AU650717B2

AU650717B2 - Structure of improved stackable container

Info

Publication number: AU650717B2
Application number: AU11212/92A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Emilio Mur Gimeno
Original assignee: Iberoamericana del Embalaje SA
Current assignee: Iberoamericana del Embalaje SA
Priority date: 1991-04-24
Filing date: 1992-02-25
Publication date: 1994-06-30
Anticipated expiration: 2012-02-25
Also published as: GR1001442B; TNSN92029A1; HU912631D0; IL99313A0; IE913002A1; BE1005633A5; IE68047B1; PT8785T; AU1121292A; GB2255076B; PT8785U; DE4129458A1; NZ239207A; MA22311A1; FR2675773B1; HUT60966A; GB9118925D0; ITBS910092A1; FR2675773A1; NL9101497A

Description

DbV/1 7 ReguLation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

TO BE.WEE)B PLCN Nam of Aplcn *RARCN E UAESA Acua Inetrs:Priad *.tl -33SnVcne e apiSan Adrs fo.evc: CLIA A RE 7 lg~reYw 11 itra utai Inenio Til:"TUTR.FIPOVDSAKECNANR Th folwn sttmn.safl ecito fti netoicuigtebs ehdo pefrmn itkon.om: r -2- CONTAINER BLANK The invention relates to a container blank which foims a stackable container. The completed container will have on two of its parallel sides, either the longer sides or the end walls, a double wall, the inner partition of which has a proiection at each end, and these projections are inserted into matching recesses made in the adjacent side of the container, in such a way that they lie level with the said side. The joints thus formed are covered on the outside by flaps hinged at each end of the outer partition of the double wall.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Various kinds of stackable containers in the form of open boxes are already known, which have methods of support and insertion so that when they are placed one on top of another the resulting load is steble and can adequately withstand the vertical stresses that the containers must endure during stacking.

Known containers are usually provided with an overhanging flap which extends from the upper border of their shorter sides or end walls, projecting S:*I horizontally towards the inside of the confines of the container, thus forming a wide ledge which extends without interruption along the entire length of each end wall, and on which will rest another container placed immediately on top. The stacks thus formed have the disadvantage that the projecting flaps are not sufficiently strong enough to withstand the vertical stresses that develop when piling several containers one on top of one another, and the stack loses its stability and crushes the packed products.

In order to overcome this drawback, triangular prisms have been arranged in each corer of the container which form props for the projecting flaps.

-3- These props partially solve the problem, since they hold up the projecting flaps along the edges, although the centre section remains unsupported. On the other hand, these prismatic props reduce the capacity of the container.

In more recent times, the applicant found an effective solution to the problem by forming the sides that must support the load from two adjoining partitions, in which the undulations of the corrugated cardboard run vertically, so that the upper border provides a strong, sturdy base for any other containers placed on top.

This convenient arrangement is also reinforced by means of the Q extensions provided at the ends of the inner partition of the double-walled sides, the extensions of which adjoin or overlap the upper border of the adjacent side of the container.

These structures have been widely developed by the applicant IBEROAMERICANA DEL EMBALAJE, by means of the following versions: 0* '13 VERSION A. In this case the short sides or end walls of the container have a wide flap extending along the entire length of their upper borders, which folds down inside the container, forming a double wall the same height as the side wall itself.

The aforementioned wide flap has end extensions which adjoin and adhere to the inner surface of the adjacent long side.

This design provides end walls whose upper borders are considerably thickened and act as a base for another container placed on top, this base being partially extended to the longer sides.

The two adjoining partitions that make up each end wall are each -4provided with flaps at each end which are turned orthogonally until they back up against and are glued, one to each side of the longer side of the container, a-vJ therefore the ends of these longer sides have three thicknesses of material, forming a. very sturdy container.

VERSION B. In this second case, the end walls are also double, but in contrast to the preceding example, the inner partition extends from the upper edge of the end wall to approximately half its height. Similarly, its extensions or end flaps are, turned orthogonally and fit into recesses or notches made in the longer side walls. The end flaps of each end wall fold round the corners of the .1010 container and are glued to the adjacent long side and to the folded flap of the inner partition.

VERSION C. This case is similar to that shown in version B3, but varies in that the end flaps of the inner partition of the end wall are positioned on the upper edge of the adjacent long wall, on the same vertical plane as the latter, and the respective end flaps of the end walls which fold round the corners of the container are folded against and glued to both.

The present invention is an improvement on other known versions and :in particular on the three cases hereinbefore described.

SUMMARY OF THE MNENTION According to the present invention there is provided a- blank for forming a container, said blank including a sheet of material that can be stamped out, with cutting and folding lines marking out a central panel for the formation of a rectangular base wall; panels to form the main side walls articulating from the longer sides of the said rectangular base wall, and, panels to form the lesser side t .9 walls articulating from the shorter sides of the base, these four panels when folded upwards, defining the area of the container, each short side having an extension of the same size articulating from its upper border, said extension being separated from said short side wall by a strip contained between two grooves marking parallel fold-lines towards the inside, in such a way that when the said extension is folded down towards the interior of the container, it remains in a vertical position in a plane parallel to the corresponding short side with which it forms a double wall, resting its edge on the container bottom and, in addition, forming on the upper edge of the short side a longitudinal ledge which acts as a support for another container placed immediately on top, the said extensions of the short sides having on their side edges projections at each end which when turned down from the inside of the container frame are inserted in the same plane as the adjacent long side wall and the longer sides of the container to be formed have recesses 0* made at each end, starting at the top edge and extending to halfway down, which recesses are covered on the outside by end flaps articulating from the side edges of the shorter end walls and receive said projections.

The container provides an open, stackable box, preferably in the shape of a rectangular parallelpiped, two parallel sides of which, be they the longer .9* sides or the end walls, are formed by two homologous partitions in which the corrugations of the cardboard run vertically, abutted together to form a double wall, the upper border of which is noticeably wide, thus allowing it to act as a base to give safe support to another or other containers placed immediately on top.

4 i -6- The inner partitions of each double wall may be separate pieces or folded extensions of the outer partitions.

The inner partition is provided with projections at each end which are folded through 90° to be inserted into a matching recess cut out of the corresponding end of each adjacent side, with which they are perfectly aligned on both sides and along the upper edge.

The container thus formed may be provided with crests or projections suitable for fitting some boxes over others, avoiding dangerous lateral displacements during stacking which would endanger the stability of the stacks formed.

A more complete idea of the invention is given by the following description, considered together with the attached drawings which, diagrammatically and by way of example, which is in no way limited, show o practical embodiments of the invention.

9*9900 In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a fragmentary view of a first embodiment of a corner of a container blank for a container in which means have been provided for inserting one container over another situated immediately underneath; Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing part of a container formed from the o* container blank of Fig. 1 in the assembly phase. This figure shows a corner of the container being assembled, in which no means of insertion between the containers has been foreseen, but it is clear that these insertions can be formed by appropriate crests which would fit into recesses of a matching shape and size, -7made in the lower edge of the comers of the superimposed container; Fig. 3 shows a perspective view of the same container as Fig. 2, after assembly, viewed from the inside. It can be seen that the end wall is formed by two parallel partitions. The inner partition has a projection at the end which is inserted into the recess cut into the adjacent side wall; Fig. 4 shows a coner of the container in Figs. 2 and 3 after being assembled; Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing a comer of a second embodiment of a container. In this embodiment it can be seen that a crest emerges from the S. 1Q upper comer edge which forms a dihedral angle, one wing of which is situated on the end wall of the container and the other on the adjacent main side wall. This crest fits into a recess made in the lower border of the comer of another container placed on top, which is held between the four comer crests of the container placed immediately below; and *1S Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a comer of the container shown in Fig.

where angular crest can be seen on the top comer edge and on the lower edge of he same comer there is a recess designed to receive a matching crest emerging from another container placed immediately below, with a slight movement of adjustment.

The containers are fitted into one another by means of these devices, forming stacks of a considerable height without any lateral displacement.

In describing the drawings, it is noted that reference numeral refers to the base of the container, along the main sides of which stand the longer sides and along the shorter sides the end walls which are each provided with -8extensions at the ends, constituting the flaps which fold and close the corners of the container.

Reference numeral indicates a wide flap which articulates fromt the upper border of the end wall. This flap has the same measurements as the end wall and is folded down towards the inside of the container to be situated vertically and parallel to the end wall with which it forms a double wall. The two walls of which and have the channels of the corrugated material of which they are composed running vertically, resulting in a combined wall of considerable mechanical strength, ideal for effectively bearing the vertical stresses that develop when several containers are stacked.

The articulation between each end wall and its wide flap is 0:90: carried out by means of two fold lines and between which is a strip -8which forms a wide ledge on the top edge of each end, wall, where another container will rest firmly on top.

In the embodiment shown in Figs. 1, 5 and 6, a wide recess has been food cut between each end wall and its flap which fulfils two functions. Firstly, food It forms an opening -10- between every two stacked containers to provide an air passage for the ventilation of the packed products; and secondly this opening -9is to permit the fingers of the hand to be inserted between every two containers for carrying purposes.

To each side edge of each flap are hinged lugs -11- which, when the flaps are folded down, move down with them and are deflected orthogonally to fit into the notch -12- made in the top ends of each longer side being perfectly aligned with the said longer side, on either side, and level with the top -9edge, as shown in Figs. 3 and The assembly formed by the two longer side walls the end walls -3with their double inside wall and the projections -11- inserted into the longer sides of the box, form the corners of the container, which are covered by the wide flaps hinged at the respective side edges of the main outer partitions -3of the end walls as shown in Figs. 4 and 6.

These closing flaps are joined, preferably, by means of adhesive to the adjacent long side and to the lug -11- inserted into the notch -12- of Lhe long side, so that it is invisible from the outside.

In Figs. 5 and 6, it may be observed that, in addition to the characteristics described in the preceding paragraphs, the container so formed is *o also provided with means to permit the successive fitting of some boxes over *too*: others and thus to stabilize them when they are placed one on top of another in S stacks, these means consisting of the angular crests -13- emerging from the upper 15 edge of each corner, between which crests -13- is fitted another container placed immediately above, and which is provided with recesses -14- in the lower edge of the corners, into which are inserted the angular crests -13- emerging from the corners of the box placed immediately underneath.

The container so described has been designed so that it may be assembled entirely by machine, without the intervention of manpower, and this is a considerable advantage. The containers thus formed are equipped with sturdy means of stacking, without the need to provide triangular supporting prisms in the corners which reduce the capacity of the assembled container to a large extent.

The retention of the inner partition of the end walls inside the container is carried out simply by inserting the lateral lugs -11- into the notches -12- of the longer sides The end flaps which fold round the corners of the container, completely cover the connection between the lugs -11- and the longer side walls which is not visible from the outside.

Another preferred aspect of the container described derives from the upper edge of the end wall which, owing to its sturdy character, provides a very strong, stable base to give effective support to the weight of one or more containers placed on top. This base also extends along the ends of the upper border of the longer side walls, increasing the supporting surface between l1q containers.

.E

The nature of the invention having been suitably described, it must be pointed out that this is not strictlylimited to the exact details of this description, since it is possible to introduce changes in detail as long as they do not alter the S essential character of the object described.

s S*

Claims

1. A blank for forming a container, said blank including a sheet of' material that can be stamped out, with cutting and folding lines marking out a central panel fJ\r the formation of a rectangular base wall; panels to form the main side walls articulating from the longer sides of the said rectangular base wal, and panels to form the lesser side walls articulating from the shorter sides of the base, these four panels when folded upwards, defining the area of the container, each short side having an extension of the same size articulating from its upper border, said extension being separated from said short side wall by a strip contained between two grooves marking parallel fold-lines towards the inside, in such a way that when the said extension is folded down towards the interior of the container, i it remains in a vertical position in a plane parallel to the corresponding short side with which it forms a double wall, resting its edge on the container bottom and, in addition, forming on the upper edge of the short side a longitudinal ledge 15 which acts as a support for another container placed immediately on top, the said extensions of the short sides having on their side edges projections at each end which when. turned down from the inside of the container frame are inserted in the same plane as the adjacent long side vall and the longer sides of the container to be formed have recesses made at each end, starting at the top edge and extending to halfway down, which recesses are covered on the outside by end flaps articulating from the side edges of the shorter end walls and receive said projections.

12- 2. The blank of claim 1, wherein the recesses cut into the longer sides are covered on the outside and open on the inside, forming a cut-out which receives and retains the projection of a complementary shape which articulates from each side edge of the folded-down extensions that form the inner partitions of each end wall when said container is formed. 3. The blank of claim 2, wherein the projections that hinge from the sides of the inner partition of each end wall fit into the closed recesses of the longer sides, from the interior of the container, being retained in the said recesses, preferably by means of adhesive. 4. The blank of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the projections articulating from the inner partition of each end wall have their top edges level with the longitudinal ledge formed on the upper border of the said end walls, forming an extension of the said ledge with the upper border of the corners of the container. 5. The blank of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the upper border of end walls and that of the orthogonal flaps extending from the long sides are 06** surrounded by elevations at a dihedral angle of 900 which emerge from each S corner of the container, the lower edge of each corner also being provided with SC C* recesses matching the shape and capacity of the said elevations. 6. A blank for forming a container substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 13 7. An assembled container when formed from the blank of any one of the preceding claims. D A TED this 29th day of April 1994. IBEROAMERICANA DEL EMBALAJE S.A. By their Patent Attorneys: CALLINAN LAWRIE 5550 S. 00086 *0 S S 00S so.. 0* 0 ABSTRACT The invention relates to a blank for forming a container. The blank includes cutting and folding ines to form a central panel with long sides (2) and end wall,- End walls have flaps which has a flap articulated thereto. Flap is folded to form a double wall with flap with a lug (11) fitting into a notch (12) in long side see#* Q @3 0 00 0 0*0* ses S.4.