EP0089068B1

EP0089068B1 - Bag-in-box package

Info

Publication number: EP0089068B1
Application number: EP83103360A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Masataka Okushita
Original assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co Ltd
Current assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Co Ltd
Priority date: 1980-02-22
Filing date: 1981-02-20
Publication date: 1988-05-04
Also published as: EP0089068A3; EP0089068A2

Description

This invention relates to a bag-in-box package wherein a hermetically sealed bag of flexible material is disposed within and secured to an outer box in a state of close internal contact with the box with a liquid filled therein, said box having a set of four panels forming a rectangular tube, a set of four top flaps conjointly closing one end of the rectangular tube, and a set of four bottom flaps conjointly closing the other end of the rectangular tube, and wherein a fitment is attached to the bag so as to project outwardly through the box, and a dispenser mechanism is coupled to the fitment, which mechanism comprises a spout firmly engaged with the fitment and a cap removably engaged with the spout.
With regard to inflating the bag, it is known in the art (see e.g. FR-A-1 182 724) to inflate such bags into close internal contact with the surrounding box, particularly when the bag is not previously secured to the box in such a way that it automatically erects.
In bag-in-box (BIB) packaging, as heretofore practiced in the industry, a desired product is first filled into the bags, as through a fitment permanently attached thereto, and the filled bags are then placed in boxes. Dispenser mechanisms are fitted to the fitments projecting outwardly of the boxes.
A bag-in-box (BIB) package as mentioned at the beginning is known by GB-A-1 155 594. This package includes a fitment attached to one of the layers of the bag and projecting outwardly of the box. The bag has a pouring nozzle projecting outwardly of the box and applied with a cap. In this package, dust tends to enter the bag through the pouring nozzle before the capping. This is not desirable.
It, therefore, is an object of the present invention to provide a bag-in-box (BIB) package as mentioned above in which dust can not enter the bag through the pouring nozzle before the capping.
The present invention seeks to overcome the above problem of the prior art. In the bag-in-box package according to the invention the spout has a large diameter portion screw-engaged around the fitment and overlying the distal end surface of the same, and a seal foil is interposed between, and clamped by said large diameter portion and said end surface of the fitment for sealingly closing the fitment, the fitment has at its distal end an end seal which is provided inside of said seal foil integrally with the fitment and has been broken for filling the bag with the liquid before the seal foil is provided in position, and an opener member for puncturing said seal foil is housed removably within the dispenser mechanism.
Preferably, the seal is a foil made of metal.
Preferably, the opener member is disposed within a space between the seal foil and the cap. The opener member may have a pointed end and may be disposed in said space normally with its pointed end directed away from the seal foil.
The above and other features and advantages of this invention and the manner of attaining them will become more apparent, and the invention itself will best be understood, from the following description of illustrative embodiments thereof which is to be read with reference to the attached drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an enlarged sectional view of a part of a BIB-package with a fitment attached to the bag, shown together with a punch for opening its end seal prior to its inflation;
Fig. 2 is an elevational view of an example of dispenser mechanism to be attached to the fitment of Fig. 1; and
Fig. 3 is a sectional view, partly in elevation, of the dispenser mechanism of Fig. 2 as attached to the fitment of Fig. 1.
Fig. 1 is an enlarged representation of the fitment 70 on the bag 4. The fitment is an integral molding of plastics material, in the shape of a short hollow cylinder having a breakable seal 72 closing its outer end and a flange 74 on its inner end. The fitment 70 defines a passageway 76 for the introduction and dispensation of a beverage or other desired fluid product into and out of the bag. The flange 74 adheres to the inside surface of the bag 4 along its edge defining an opening that receives the fitment 70. The fitment opens as its end seal 72 is punched and deflected as indicated by the dot-and-dash lines.

The bag 4 is still in a flat state, and its fitment 70 extends through the hole 40 in a bevel flap of the box.
Fig. 2 and 3 illustrate an example of a dispenser mechanism 266 to be attached to the fitment 70 of each BIB package after the filling of a beverage or any other desired commodity. The exemplified dispenser mechanism 266 comprises a spout 268 and a cap 270, both of plastics material. The spout 268 is shown as a stepped tubular member, including a large diameter portion 276 internally threaded at 274 for engagement with the external thread 272 (Fig. 1) of the fitment 70, and a small diameter portion 278 extending upwardly from the large diameter portion. The spout portion 276 may not necessarily make a threaded engagement with the fitment 70 but may be press fitted over, or otherwise firmly engaged with, the fitment. The spout portion 276 is flanged at 280, and the other spout portion 278 is externally threaded at 282 for engagement with the internally threaded portion of the cap 270. A seal 286, normally in the form of metal foil, is fitted between the two constitutional portions 276 and 278 of the spout 268 for closing the fitment 70. For opening the seal 286, an opener member 284 having a pointed end is accommodated in a closed space bounded by the cap 270 and the spout portion 278.
Assembled as pictured in Fig. 2, the dispenser mechanism 266 is mounted in position on the filled BIB package, its spout portion 276 being threadedly or otherwise securely engaged with the fitment 70. The flange 280 on the spout portion 276 engages the encircling edges of the box 2 and bag 4 between itself and the flange 74 on the fitment 70.
For the dispensation of the product from within the BIB package, the consumer first unscrews the cap 270 from the spout 268. He or she then takes out the opener member 284 and, with its pointed tip, punctures the seal 286. The product can now be poured out of the package through the fitment 70 and the spout 268, the end seal 72 of the fitment having been punched open during the fabrication of the package, as in Fig. 1.
The fitment-dispenser combination of Figs. 2 and 3 feature the fact that the dispenser mechanisms 266 can be attached to the fitments 70, after the filling of the BIB package. Such delayed attachment of the dispenser mechanisms to the fitments is preferred because of the smaller space requirement of the packages until they are filled.

Claims

1. A bag-in-box package wherein a hermetically sealed bag (4) of flexible material is disposed within and secured to an outer box (2) in a state of close internal contact with the box with a liquid filled therein, said box having a set of four panels forming a rectangular tube, a set of four top flaps conjointly closing one end of the rectangular tube, and a set of four bottom flaps conjointly closing the other end of the rectangular tube, and wherein a fitment (70) is attached to the bag (4) so as to project outwardly through the box, and a dispenser mechanism (266) is coupled to the fitment (70), which mechanism comprises a spout (268) firmly engaged with the fitment and a cap (270) removably engaged with the spout, characterized in that the spout (268) has a large diameter portion (276) screw-engaged around the fitment (70) and overlying the distal end surface of the same, and a seal foil (268) is interposed between, and clamped by said large diameter portion (276) and said end surface of the fitment (70) for sealingly closing the fitment, that the fitment (70) has at its distal end an end seal (72) which is provided inside of said seal foil (286) integrally with the fitment and has been broken for filling the bag (4) with the liquid before the seal foil (286) is provided in position, and that an opener member (284) for puncturing said seal foil (286) is housed removably within the dispenser mechanism (266).

2. The bag-in-box package according to claim 1, wherein the foil is made of metal.

3. The bag-in-box package according to claim 1, wherein the opener member (284) is disposed within a space between the seal foil (286) and the cap (270).

4. The bag-in-box package according to claim 3, wherein the opener member (284) has a pointed end and is disposed in said space normally with its pointed end directed away from the seal foil (286).