AU731966B2

AU731966B2 - Improvements relating to storing and transporting packaging containers

Info

Publication number: AU731966B2
Application number: AU19031/97A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Spiros Stamatiou
Original assignee: Tetra Pak Manufacturing Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Tetra Laval Holdings and Finance SA
Priority date: 1996-04-24
Filing date: 1997-04-23
Publication date: 2001-04-12
Anticipated expiration: 2017-04-23
Also published as: AU1903197A

Description

rMuwIM1 2W5M9t Regulatlon 3.2(2)

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990

ORIGINAL

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Application Number: Lodged: Invention Title: IMPROVEMENTS RELATING TO STORING AND TRANSPORTING PACKAGING CONTAINERS The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us IMPROVEMENTS RELATING TO STORING AND TRANSPORTING PACKAGING CONTAINERS The present invention relates to the transportation and/or storage of packaging containers, and in particular to the transportation and/or storage of sealed packaging containers made from paperboard material and/or plastic and containing liquid contents such as milk, fruit juice and the like.

It is common to make packaging containers for liquid products such as milk and fruit juice from paperboard materials. A container of this type is typically made from a blank of paperboard material laminated with one or more plastic coatings which is folded and sealed to form the packaging container. The bottom wall which forms the base upon which the packaging container stands is created by performing a series of folding and sealing operations. Typically the bottom wall of the packaging container contains a seal extending transversely across its width which is formed by overlapping and folding edges of the paperboard blank.

However the transportation and storage of packaging containers made from blanks of paperboard material and filled with liquid contents can give rise to leakage problems. In particular, leakage can occur from the base seal contained in the bottom wall, as well as the edges and corners of the base of the container.

It has long been thought that the leakage problem associated with the S 20 base seal in the bottom wall of the packaging container was the consequence of a number of contributing factors, including handling, transporting, moisture content, as well as inadequate sealing of the seam. Hence to date significant effort has focussed upon developing improved forming and sealing methods for the base seal.

25 An object of the present invention is to provide a means by which packaging containers or cartons formed from paperboard and/or plastic and filled with liquid contents may be transported and/or stored with reduced incidence of leakage from the bottom wall of the packaging container.

•o •iv 2 To this end one aspect of the present invention provides a floor member adapted to support cartons in a predetermined array located substantially adjacent to one another, each said carton having a substantially flat base with a transverse seal extending across said flat base and two mutually perpendicular upright planes passing through said carton with one of said upright planes passing through said transverse seal, said floor member having a plurality of upwardly directed spaced projections having upper free ends located in a single plane whereby, in use, the upper free ends support the cartons by engaging a respective flat base of a said carton between either of said mutually perpendicular upright planes and a peripheral edge of said flat base of said carton. The present invention also preferably provides a carton carrying device including a carton supporting floor member as set out in the preceding and one or more upstanding wall means supporting side walls of the cartons.

The present invention also provides a crate carrying a plurality of cartons in an array with vertical side walls of said cartons being located substantially adjacent one another, each said carton having a substantially flat base with a transverse seal extending across said flat base and two mutually perpendicular upright planes passing through said carton with one of said upright planes passing through said transverse seal, said crate having perimeter upstanding wall 20 means and a carton supporting floor member including a plurality of upwardly *directed spaced projections having upper free ends located in a single plane coo* whereby the upper free ends support the cartons by engaging a respective flat base of a said carton between either of said mutually perpendicular upright planes and a peripheral edge of said flat base of said carton.

The present invention has particular application in the design of crates for transporting paperboard cartons filled with consumable liquid products such as milk, fruit juice and the like. However the present invention may also be utilised in the storage of paperboard or plastic containers filled with consumable liquid products, such as in refrigerators and shop display cabinets.

In accordance with this further aspect, the present invention also aims at providing a method of transporting and/or storing consumable liquid products 3 stored within paperboard cartons while alleviating the risk of leakage from the base seal and corners and edges of the base wall. According to this aspect, the present invention also provides a method of transporting and/or storing consumable liquid products packaged in paperboard cartons of the type having a substantially flat base with a transverse seal extending across said flat base and two mutually perpendicular upright planes passing through said carton with one of said upright planes passing through said transverse seal, said method including the step of locating a plurality of said cartons on a floor member having a plurality of upwardly directed spaced projections having upper free ends located in a single plane whereby the upper free ends support the cartons by engaging a respective flat base of a said carton between either of said mutually perpendicular upright planes and a peripheral edge of said flat base of said carton.

It is preferable that the projections support the packaging containers at least three locations and preferably at four locations on the bottom wall of the container. Preferably the projections support the packaging containers at locations where the packaging containers are strongest and away from base seal and corners of the bottom wall of each container.

This invention is based upon the discovery that by redesigning the floor of the transportation crate or storage unit the leakage problem associated with the 20 base seal, edges and corners in the bottom and side walls of the paperboard or plastic packaging container is overcome, or at least significantly reduced. In particular it has been discovered that by supporting the base of the packaging container on an array of surfaces raised above the general level of the floor, the base seal is less likely to come into contact with moisture accumulated on the 25 base of floor. It has been found that harsh contact/abrasion along with moisture o on the floor of the transportation crate or storage unit weakens the base seal in *the bottom of the packaging container and this in turn leads to leakage of the :liquid contents from the base seal and/or corners.

The present invention will be better understood and appreciated from the following discussion of a preferred embodiment. Reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 depicts a top plan view of a crate for transporting packaging containers made from paperboard material, with the crate including a floor member according to the present invention; Fig. 2 illustrates a perspective view of the transportation crate depicted in Fig. 1 with the vertical walls of the crate omitted so as to better illustrate the floor member of the crate; Fig. 3 depicts a side view of the transportation crate shown in Fig. 1 (vertical walls of the crate not shown).

Referring to the accompanying drawings, the transportation crate 1 includes a floor member 2. In the embodiment depicted the floor member 2 comprises a series of orthogonal intersecting floor elements or webs 3 extending diagonally with respect to the side walls 4 of the floor of the crate. The intersecting webs 3 define spaces 5 which extend through the floor of the crate.

The upper faces 6 of the webs 3 include upwardly extending projections 7.

The projections 7 are sized and spaced to define an array of surfaces 8 upon which the paperboard packaging containers are supported.

The projections 7 are preferably located so that the surfaces 8 support each packaging container at sites on the bottom face of the container which do not coincide with the base seal in the bottom wall of the container which is S 20 normally located in a mid plane of a square or rectangular container. Preferably each packaging container is supported by the upper surfaces 8 of four projections.

*In the embodiment depicted the floor of the transportation crate is sized to accommodate a total of 16 packaging containers. The containers are shown in broken lines in Figs 1 and 3.

The floor member 2 may be formed integrally with the transportation crate 1. In such an embodiment the crate 1 may be molded from a suitable plastics material. Alternatively the floor member 2 may comprise a separate member which is inserted in the transportation crate to provide a base upon which the 30 liquid packaging containers are supported. Where the floor member is formed separately to the crate the floor member 2 preferably includes an array of spaced nodules or projections 7 with upper surfaces adapted for supporting the packaging containers.

Whilst the preferred embodiment has been described with reference to transportation crates for paperboard packaging containers, it should be appreciated that the present invention can also be utilised in the transportation of liquid food products packaged in other than paperboard, and also utilised in storage units for such containers, such as refrigerators and display cabinets.

.oo.*

Claims

2. A carton supporting floor member according to claim 1, wherein at least three said projections support each said carton.
3. A carton supporting floor member according to claim 1, wherein at least four said projections support each said carton. oo 4. A carton supporting floor member according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the floor member is formed by a plurality of webs intersecting one another at a plurality of spaced intersection points.
5. A carton supporting floor member according to claim 4, wherein the webs ego* extend diagonally relative to perimeter edges of the floor member. 01
6. A carton supporting floor member according to claim 4 or claim wherein the webs uniformly intersect one another. t* o
7. A carton supporting floor member according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein said projections extend upwardly from said webs between the web intersection points.
8. A carton carrying device including a carton supporting floor member according to any one of claims 1 to 7, and one or more upstanding wall means supporting side walls of said cartons.
9. A carton carrying device according to claim 8, wherein the upstanding wall means and said carton supporting floor member are integrally formed. A crate carrying a plurality of cartons in an array with vertical side walls of said cartons being located substantially adjacent one another, each said carton having a substantially flat base with a transverse seal extending across said flat base and two mutually perpendicular upright planes passing through said carton with one of said upright planes passing through said transverse seal, said crate having perimeter upstanding wall means and a carton supporting floor member including a plurality of upwardly directed spaced projections having upper free ends located in a single plane whereby the I[[er free ends support the cartons by engaging a respective flat base of a said carton between either of said mutually perpendicular upright planes and a peripheral edge of said flat base of said carton.
11. A crate according to claim 10, wherein at least three said projections oooo° support each said carton.
12. A crate according to claim 10, wherein at least four said projections *ooo support each said carton. o• o*
13. A crate according to any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein the floor member is formed by a plurality of webs intersecting one another at a plurality of spaced intersection points.
14. A crate according to claim 13, wherein the webs extend diagonally relative to perimeter edges of the floor member. A crate according to claim 13 or claim 14, wherein the webs uniformly intersect one another.
16. A crate according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein said projections extend upwardly from said webs between the web intersection points.
17. A method of transporting and/or storing consumable liquid products packaged in paperboard cartons of the type having a substantially flat base with a transverse seal extending across said flat base and two mutually perpendicular upright planes passing through said carton with one of said upright planes passing through said transverse seal, said method including the step of locating a plurality of said cartons on a floor member having a plurality of upwardly directed spaced projections having upper free ends located-in a single plane whereby the upper free ends support the cartons by engaging a respective flat base of a said carton between either of said mutually perpendicular upright planes and a peripheral edge of said flat base of said carton.
18. A method according to claim 17, wherein said cartons are arranged olsubstantially adjacent one another. o:0 19. A method according to claim 18, wherein partition or other support means is not located between adjacent said cartons. ll i S ooo 9 A method according to any one of claims 17 to 19, wherein said floor member also includes one or more upstanding wall means to support side walls of at least some of said cartons. DATED this 1st day of February, 2001 TETRA PAK MANUFACTURING PTY LTD WATERMARK PATENT TRADEMARK ATTORNEYS 290 BURWOOD ROAD HAWTHORN VICTORIA 3122 AUSTRALIA P2768AU00 SKP:JC *0000