DE8807119U1 - Two-tier pack - Google Patents

Description

Description

The invention relates to a multiple packaging in which two similar trays loaded with the product to be packaged are arranged one above the other and connected to one another by means of a wrapping in order to form a two-tier package for sales or distribution purposes.

For retail or smaller quantity sales, the two-tier pack is opened and the trays are separated. For this purpose, the wrapper has removable price strips that can be removed so that the upper tray can be separated from the lower one to leave one tray (the lower one) open, exposing the containers, and the other tray (the upper one) remaining closed by remaining parts of the wrapper, thus forming a multi-tier pack.

All components of the packaging are made of cardboard or another suitable foldable sheet material.

The invention provides a package made of cardboard or a similar foldable sheet material and comprising a pair of similar trays loaded with product containers and arranged one above the other and provided with a wrapper connecting the trays so as to form a two-tier package, the wrapper comprising first tearable means with

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where the wrapper can be torn open to allow separation of the trays so that one tray is open leaving the containers free for individual removal and the other tray remains closed by attached wrapper parts to form a compartment container unit.

According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the enclosure may comprise second tearable tabs whereby the enclosure part can be removed to open the other tray, whereby the containers in the other tray are free for individual removal.

According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the enclosure may comprise a top wall overlying the tops of the containers in the topmost tray, upper wall portions hinged to opposite side edges of the top wall, intermediate wall portions attached to the respective side walls of the topmost tray, and lower wall portions attached to the respective side walls of the bottommost tray, the first rupturable means releasably connecting the intermediate wall portions and the lower wall portions, and the second rupturable means releasably connecting the upper wall portions and the intermediate wall portions to one another.

Preferably, the first and second tearable means are formed by tear strip portions of the wrap.

Preferably, the uppermost tray has downwardly directed guide tabs which interact with the containers in the lower tray to limit relative transverse movement between the trays. This feature is particularly advantageous when the wrap is applied to the stacked trays during the packaging process.

An embodiment of the invention is described below with reference to the drawing.

Us show:

frig. 1 is a plan view of a blank from which a tray can be formed which is a component of a two-tier package according to the invention;

frig. 2 is a perspective view of a shell formed from a blank according to Fig. 1;

frig. 3 a perspective view of a Two-tier pack according to the invention, in which a lower tear strip is partially removed; and

frig. 4 a two-tier pack, in which a lower tear strip is completely removed so that the two shells can be separated from each other and an upper tear strip is partially torn.

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Reference is first made to Fig. 1, ^which shows a longitudinal cut-out 10 which forms an elongated base wall part 12, furthermore opposite side wall parts 14, 16 which are each pivotally connected to the base wall part along longitudinal fold lines 18, 20 and end wall parts 22, 24 which are each pivotally connected to the base wall part along transverse fold lines 26, 28. In order to keep the side wall parts and end wall parts upright with respect to the base wall part in the shells set up in Fig. 2 , fastening tabs fl-f4 are provided at each corner of the shell cut-out, by means of which the end wall parts are fastened to the side wall parts.

Along each side of the tray is formed a series of foldable tabs T1-T4 and T5-T8 which are hinged to both the base wall portion and the respective side wall portions. These foldable tabs can be shaped to form downwardly extending sections P1-P4, P5-P8 by pressing the foldable tabs into the interior of the tray. The downwardly extending sections form guide elements along each side of the base portion of the tray, referred to below. Furthermore, each side wall portion of the tray has a pair of spaced-apart locking apertures A1, A2; A3, A4, each of which is engaged by a locking tab provided on a wrapped-around wraparound wall portion of the package, also referred to below.

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To form a package according to the invention, a first lower tray T1 is erected from the tray blank 10, similar to the tray T2 as shown in Fig. 2, but with the foldable tabs not pressed inwards. The tray therefore has no downwardly extending guide elements formed by these tabs. The tray is then loaded with containers J1, for example glass bottles, arranged in two rows of five bottles each, thus forming the lowermost tray of a two-tier package. The tray T2 is then shaped to form downwardly extending guide elements and is loaded with containers J2 and then placed on the lower tray T1. The guide elements of the tray T2 are arranged to bear against the upper wall parts (or the lids) of the containers J1 in the lower tray so as to form a transverse movement of the upper tray T2 relative to the lower tray T1 during the application of the outer casing 30.

Reference is now made to Figures 3 and 4 which show how the outer cover 30 is attached to the stacked trays T1 and T2, the cover forming an upper wall part 32 which overlies the tops of the containers in the upper tray T2 and side wall parts 34, 36 which are connected to opposite longitudinal edges of the upper wall part 32. The side wall part 34 has an upper wall section 34a which in turn forms a series of container holding openings R; an upper tear strip 34b; a middle wall part 34c; a lower tear strip 34d; and a lower wall part 34e. Accordingly, the

Side wall 36 has an upper wall part 36a, which is also provided with a series of Container holding openings R'; an upper tear strip 36b; a middle wall part 36c; a lower tear strip 36d and a lower wall part 36e.

Instead of tear strips, other suitable tearable means may be used to remove the wrapping partially or completely.

The wrapper is connected to the trays Tl and T2 by gluing the middle and lower wall parts to the corresponding side walls of the trays. Thus, the middle wall parts of the wrapper 34c and 36c are glued to the side walls 16' and 14' of the upper tray T2, while the lower wall parts of the wrapper 34e and 36e are glued to the side walls 16 and 14 of the lower tray Tl, respectively. In addition, the lower wall parts of the wrapper 34e and 36e each have locking tabs t which engage the respective locking openings A1-A4 to improve the connection between the wrapper and the lower tray Tl. This creates a two-tier multi-pack for distribution and sale which can be opened to access the contents of both trays by removing all tear strips.

However, the retailer can also separate the trays of a two-tier pack and lay out the individual trays. To do this, first remove both lower tear-off strips to separate the trays, allowing the upper tray T2 to be removed from the lower tray Tl.

It should be noted that this opening operation produces a tray T1 which is open so that all of the containers J1 are accessible for sale as individual units, with the other tray T2 remaining closed by the remaining portions of the enclosure 30 and thus can be sold as a single compartment unit. The lower wall portions 34e, 36e of the enclosure remain connected to the side walls 16 and tray T1 to improve the strength of the tray, thereby allowing the use of a thinner cardboard box than would otherwise be necessary. If desired, the retailer can sell the containers of tray T2 as separate units by simply removing the upper tear strips 34b and 36b and then removing the upper wall portion 32 and the upper wall portions 34 and 36 of the enclosure, thereby forming an open tray corresponding to tray T1. As with the o'chale Tl, the rigidity of the shell T2 is improved by keeping the middle wall parts of the casing 34c and 36c connected to the side walls 16' and 14' of the shell T2.

A multipack is described above with two identical trays T1, T2 arranged one above the other and connected to one another by means of a wrap 30 to form a two-tier pack for containers.

The enclosure has a cover wall 32 which covers the tops of the containers J2 in the upper shell and side wall parts 34c, 36c; 34e, 36e which are glued to the sides of both shells and additionally locked to the sides of the lower shell.

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To open the pack and separate the trays, the wrapper has upper and lower tear strips 34b, 36b; 34d, 36d located along the bonded side wall joints of the tray side members. First, the lower tear strips 34d, 36d are removed so that the upper tray can be separated from the lower tray. This leaves one (lower) tray which is open, exposing the containers and forming a shelf pack for individual container removal, and the other tray remains closed by wrapper members to form a unitary multipack. If desired, the upper tear strips 34b, 36b can be removed to remove the remaining wrapper from the closed tray to convert it too into an open pack for individual container removal.

Claims (5)

Protection claims 1. A package made of cardboard or similar foldable sheet material, characterized in that the package comprises a pair of similar trays (Tl, T2) loaded with product containers and arranged one above the other, that a wrapper (30) connects the two trays (Tl, T2) to one another, thereby forming a two-tier package, and that the wrapper (30) comprises first tearable elements (34d) which enable the wrapper to be torn open so that the trays can be separated and one tray is open so that the containers are exposed for individual removal and the other tray is secured by corresponding Envelope parts remain closed to form a MeI/fach unit. 2. A package according to claim 1, characterized in that the wrapper has second tearable elements (34b) for removing the wrapper and opening the other tray, whereby the containers in this tray are free for individual removal. 3. Pack according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the cover (30) has a top wall (32) which is arranged above the top sides of the containers of the uppermost tray, further upper wall parts (34a, 36a) which are hinged to opposite side edges of the top wall (32), and middle wall parts (34c, 36c) which are attached to corresponding side walls of the uppermost tray and which are lower Wall parts attached to respective side walls (34e, 36e) of the lowermost shell, and wherein the first rupturable elements (34d) releasably connect the intermediate wall parts and lower wall parts, and the second rupturable elements (34b) releasably connect the lower wall parts and middle wall parts. 4. Packing according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the first and second tearable elements (34d, 34b) are formed from tear strip parts of the wrapping. 5. A package according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the upper tray has downwardly extending guide tabs (P1-P8) which cooperate with the containers of the lower tray to reduce relative transverse movements between the trays.