EP0234139A1 - Foldable disposable container made of impermeable material, such as a flower-vase - Google Patents

Abstract

The container consists of a relatively rigid blank, particularly made from cardboard, and of a flexible leaktight sheet (2), especially made from a plastic material, made integral with the blank. The blank (1) has a central part (3) forming a base and flaps (4) radiating in a star shape and intended to form the facets of the wall, these flaps being connected to the base via folding lines (5) and being connected to one another via the parts (9) of the flexible sheet extending between them and, on assembly of the container, form inner folds which press against the said flaps. <IMAGE>

Description

The present invention relates to a collapsible disposable container made of waterproof material, such as a flower vase, this container being capable of being stored flat before mounting at the place of use.

In general, such containers are massive and have their final shape at the end of manufacture. They are relatively heavy and fragile. In addition, their cost price is such that they are intended for multiple uses while remaining on site, which is the case for example for a flower vase to be installed in a cemetery. But when the risk of theft exists or when the duration of use is reduced (short stay in hospital, flying exhibition, etc.), the interested parties are led to renounce the use of these containers and resort to expedients such as lost packaging like jars.

There are many packages lost in cardboard lined with a waterproof inner coating and intended to contain a product to be packaged, such as a drink, a cooked dish or other ... But these packages, if they have the advantage of 'being waterproof, light, unbreakable, inexpensive ..., have the major drawback of not being storable flat up to the place of individual use; in fact, they are mounted by means of automatic machines at the place of filling and it would not be possible to do so elsewhere.

Independently of these packages, there are also known foldable disposable containers, constituted by a relatively rigid blank, made of cardboard in particular, and by a flexible, waterproof sheet, in particular of plastic, made integral with the blank, which has a central part forming the bottom and star radiating shutters, intended to constitute the facets of the wall, and connected to the bottom by fold lines.

Such a container is known from French patent ^No. 1,515,445 and comprises a carton blank lined with a waterproof protective sheet of which it is made integral by means of a thermoplastic binder. The sheet is made of a heat shrinkable thermoplastic material, so that it contracts in the vicinity of the edge of the container during the shaping of this container in a vacuum and heating mold, which is part of a relatively complex and expensive material. This sheet ensures, after retraction, a solid and final union of the container flaps with each other and with the bottom.

Another container of this type is known from US Patent ^No. 3,423,008 and formed automatically in a machine from a blank of paperboard impervious to liquids and not a cardboard blank lined with an internal flexible sheet. The cardboard blank is folded to form a bottom and side walls perpendicular thereto, the excess cardboard along the edges constituting folds which are pressed against said walls on the outside and permanently held in this position by flaps glued. The mounting of such a cardboard container at the place of individual use seems difficult to execute without the assistance of an automatic machine; indeed, these fold lines can give rise, when they are not executed in a perfect and homogeneous manner, which is always the case when proceeding by hand and on the ground, to cracks and leaks through the thickness of the cardboard.

The present invention therefore aims to design a container having the aforementioned advantages of known lost containers, container which, in the context of its use as a container by the buyer himself, is capable of being stored, sold and transported to flat, to be easily mounted and locked by hand at the place of use, to present an attractive aesthetic with a finished exterior appearance free of wrinkles, to be truly waterproof during its use and to be easily destructible by handing flat when discarded. Thus, it is a cheap consumable product which does not occupy space can find new commercial outlets of unlimited duration.

According to the invention, the flaps are connected to each other by the parts of the flexible sheet which extend between them and form during assembly of the container, internal folds pressing against said flaps.

According to a particularly advantageous embodiment, each flap is extended along only one of its sides by at least one flap extending over at least part of its length along the bisector of the sector separating the flap under consideration, from the flap consecutive so that this or these flaps of said considered flap, doubled by a half-fold of the sheet, are applied against said consecutive flap and possibly at least one of its flaps to pinch the other half-fold of the sheet .

The margins of each flap - consisting of two free edges or a free edge and the fold line connecting it to a flap - are shaped in correspondence with the edges of said container.

The container cooperates, in the assembled state, with a holding means such as an elastic, glue, staples, folded tabs ...

Various other characteristics and advantages of the invention will also emerge from the detailed description which follows.

Embodiments of the object of the invention are shown, by way of nonlimiting examples, in the accompanying drawing.

• - la figure 1 est une vue en plan en partie arrachée d'une première forme de réalisation du récipient à plat,
• - la figure 2 est une perspective montrant le récipient selon la figure 1 à l'état monté,
• - les figures 3 et 5 sont des vues analogues à la figure 1 illustrant une deuxième et une troisième formes de réalisation respectivement, tandis que les figures 4 et 6 sont des vues de dessus des récipients correspondants en fin de montage,
• - les figures 7 et 8 sont des perspectives schématiques partielles analogues à la figure 2, représentant d'autres moyens de maintien du récipient monté.

On this drawing :

• FIG. 1 is a partially cut away plan view of a first embodiment of the flat container,
• FIG. 2 is a perspective showing the container according to FIG. 1 in the assembled state,
• - Figures 3 and 5 are views similar to the FIG. 1 illustrating a second and a third embodiment respectively, while FIGS. 4 and 6 are top views of the corresponding containers at the end of assembly,
• - Figures 7 and 8 are partial schematic perspectives similar to Figure 2, showing other means of holding the mounted container.

Whatever the embodiment, the flat container has a relatively rigid blank 1 on the internal face of which a waterproof flexible sheet 2 is fixed by any suitable means. In the example shown, the blank is made of cardboard; it may be corrugated cardboard, compact cardboard or a complex consisting in particular of a sheet of micro-corrugated cardboard interposed and laminated between a sheet of paper and a sheet of compact cardboard. Still in this example, the flexible sheet 2 is made of plastic material heat-sealed on the blank 1.

The following description relates to a vase having the shape of a prism with a hexagonal base.

According to the first embodiment illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the blank 1 then has a hexagonal central portion 3 forming the bottom and flaps 4.1 to 4.6 extending in a star. Lines of olage 5.1 to 5.6 are marked in the blank between the bottom and shutters and then delimit a hexagon. The other three sides 6.1 to 6.6, 7.1 to 7.6 and 8.1 to 8.6 of the flaps 4.1 to 4.6 are free edges.

Furthermore, the sheet 2 being integral with the bottom 3 and the flaps 4, it has, the container being flat (Figure 1), free triangular parts 9.1 to 9.6 extending between the flaps 4.1 to 4.6. When mounting the container by raising the flaps relative to the bottom, these parts 9.1 to 9.6 form folds 10.1 to 10.6 (Figure 2) pressing against the adjoining flaps. In this position the edges 6 and 7 of the flaps 4 are placed side by side and form the edges of the container.

To keep the container in shape, at least one elastic band 11 can be put on the neck to encircle all shutters.

In order to improve the resistance of the flaps 4 relative to each other, a second embodiment is proposed with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

In this second embodiment, the flaps 4.1 to 4.6 are extended, along one of their sides, 6 for example, by flaps 12.1 and 12.6. These flaps are a little narrower than the flaps. They are separated from these by folding lines 13.1 to 13.6 and delimited by free edges 14.1 to 14.6 parallel to said lines over part of their extent. These edges are deflected in the direction of the center of the bottom 3 to form extensions 15.1 to 15.6 which extend substantially along the bisector of the parts 9.1 to 9.6 of the flexible and waterproof sheet 2.

When mounting the container (Figure 4), the flaps 4.1 to 4.6 are raised relative to the bottom 3 and the flaps 12.1 to 12.6 are arched inward to press against the adjoining flaps 4.6, 4.1 to 4.5 respectively, by pinching the parts 16.1 to 16.6 of the folds remaining free, folds which are secured to the flaps.

In order to further improve the maintenance of the flexible folds 10 at the same time as the holding of the flaps 4, a third embodiment is proposed with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

In this third embodiment, we find the same elements as in the second, with the difference that the first flaps 12.1 to 12.6 are extended by second flaps 17.1 to 17.6 delimited by free edges 18.1 to 18.6 aligned with the extensions 15.1 to 15.6 along the bisector of parts 9.1 to 9.6 of the flexible and waterproof sheet 2. The first flaps 12.1 to 12.6 are separated from the second flaps 17.1 to 17.6 by fold lines 19.1 to 19.6 and half of the parts 9.1 to 9.6 is then secured to said flaps, so that only a half-fold 20 remains between two adjoining flaps, the half-folds 20.1 to 20.6 being stretched by these flaps.

During assembly of the container (FIG. 6), the flaps 4.1 to 4.6 are raised relative to the bottom 3, the first flaps 12.1 to 12.6 are flattened by arching inwards against the contiguous flaps 4.6, 4.1 to 4.5 respectively and the second flaps 17.1 to 17.6 are pressed in and arched inwards against the first contiguous flaps 12.6, 12.1 to 12.5, respectively, the flexible half-folds 20.1 to 20.6 being pinched between on the one hand, the flaps 12.1 to 12.6 and 17.1 to 17.6 and , on the other hand, the flaps 4.6, 4.1 to 4.5 and the flaps 12.6, 12.1 to 12.5.

As indicated in the foregoing with reference to FIG. 2, the means for holding the container in the assembled state consists of at least one elastic 11. Other means can be used to prevent the flaps 4.1 4.6 to return to flatness under water pressure. Such means are illustrated by way of nonlimiting examples by FIGS. 7 and 8. They may be glue points or staples 21 (FIG. 7) connecting, near the neck, the associated overlapping elements. to each component. It may also be folding legs 22 (FIG. 8) each integral with a flap and inserted between the folds of the overlapping elements associated with these flaps.

In the example shown, the vase has a prismatic shape with a hexagonal base. It is obvious that other forms can be envisaged. In particular, the vase can be pyramidal with a narrow neck and, in this case, the flaps are trapezoidal so that the straight edges 6 and 7 (figure 1) or the straight edges 7 and the fold lines 13 (figures 3 and 5 ) flaps 4 are joined two by two to form the edges of the vase. In addition, these edges instead of being straight can be curved to give a certain curve to the vase.

Claims (4)

1.- Foldable disposable container made of waterproof material, capable of being stored flat before mounting at the place of use, such as a flower vase, the container consisting of a relatively rigid blank (1), cardboard in particular, and by a flexible flexible sheet (2), made of plastic in particular, made integral with the blank, which has a central part (3) forming the bottom and shutters (4) radiating in a star, intended to constitute the facets of the wall, and connected to the bottom by fold lines (5), characterized in that said flaps are connected to each other by the parts (9) of the flexible sheet which extend between them and form during assembly of the container, internal folds pressing against said flaps. 2.- container according to claim 1, characterized in that each flap (4) is extended along one (6) only on its sides (6, 7) by at least one flap (12; 12, 17) extending over at least part of its length along the bisector of the sector separating the flap considered, from the consecutive flap so that this or these flaps of said flap considered, doubled by a half-fold of the sheet, are applied against said consecutive shutter and possibly at least one of its flaps to pinch the other half-fold (20) of the sheet. 3.- container according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the margins (6, 7; 13, 7) of each flap (4) - constituted by two free edges (6, 7) or a free edge (7) and the fold line (13) connecting it to a flap (12) - are shaped in correspondence with the edges of said container. 4.- container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it cooperates, in the assembled state, with a holding means such as an elastic (11), glue, staples ( 21), folded tabs (22) ... placed on site at the time of use.

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