EP1801031A1

EP1801031A1 - Counter-foldable twin-pack for cigarettes

Info

Publication number: EP1801031A1
Application number: EP05027977A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Timothy Collins
Original assignee: JT International SA
Current assignee: JT International SA
Priority date: 2005-12-20
Filing date: 2005-12-20
Publication date: 2007-06-27

Abstract

To provide an increased area for information and branding while presenting access to only one of the packs of a twin-pack (10) at a time, there is disclosed a twin-pack (10) for cigarettes, a first and a second box-shaped pack (12;14), each having a back panel (26;25), a left side wall (19;23) and a right side wall (20;22) of the same size, a bottom wall (21;24) and a front wall (11;18), respectively, wherein both packs (12;14) are connected by a joint piece (30) having a first and a second hinge means (36;37) with opposite opening directions, respectively, for alternatively opening the packs (12;14) from an initial mutual abutment position either to the left or to the right about the first or the second hinge means (36;37), said first hinge means (36) having a portion (32) being fixed to the right side wall (20) of the first pack (12), whereas the second hinge means (37) having a portion (34) being fixed to the left side wall (23) of the second pack (14), the left side wall (19) of the first pack (12) being fixed to a left end portion (45) of a counter-joint band (38), which has its other end portion (47) fixed to the right side wall (22) of the second pack (14).

Description

The invention relates to a twin-pack for cigarettes.
For decades, cigarette cases have been known which can be unfolded to present two case halves which are filled with cigarettes, respectively. These pre-known cigarette cases are usually made from metal or plastic and are therefore heavy compared to cigarette boxes or packs made of thin cardboard.
Further, said pre-known cases present in their unfolded condition, both opened case halves with direct access to cigarettes arranged therein, whereas usually only one case half is required for taking out a cigarette.
In addition, said pre-known unfoldable cigarette cases have only a limited area for information and branding on the outside of the case halves, and disadvantageously, a part thereof is not available for branding due to mandatory health warning labels, which are required to be in a visible area on the outside of the cigarette cases.
Therefore, there is a strong need for a design for a twin-pack for cigarettes, which provides an increased area for information and branding while presenting access to only one of the packs at a time.
According to the invention, this object is attained by a twin-pack for cigarettes according to claim 1.
Preferred further embodiments of this twin-pack are characterized in dependent claims, respectively.
Advantageously, the invention provides a twin-pack for cigarettes which comprises a first and a second box-shaped pack. Each pack has a back panel, a left side wall and a right wide wall of the same size, a bottom wall and a front wall. Further, both packs are connected by a joint piece having a first and a second hinge means with opposite opening directions, respectively, for alternatively opening the packs from an initial mutual abutment position either to the left or to the right using the first or the second hinge means. The first hinge means has a portion thereof fixed at the right side wall of the first pack, whereas a second hinge means has a portion thereof fixed at the left side wall of the second pack. Further, the left side wall of the first pack is fixed to a left end portion of a counter-joint band, which has its other end portion fixed to the right side wall of the second pack.
This design for twin-pack for cigarettes according to the invention provides an increased branding area to compensate for impact lost through a mandatory health warning. This is achieved by combining two standard packs that are combined by a unique device that allows the packs to swivel around each other similar to a Jacobs Ladder child's toy. Thus, additional area for different graphic messages which appear on different sides of the panel of the joint piece, also combined with graphic information on the back panels of the packs, respectively, can be obtained.
Further, this new twin-pack for cigarettes also addresses the sense of play of users due to its intriguing alternative opening features, thereby increasing the desire of a consumer to have it.
As a further advantage, it has to be noted that in each of said unfolded positions of the twin-pack, only one of the packs presents an opening for access to cigarettes whereas the other side can be loosely covered by the joint piece, in particular, if the joint piece comprises a panel, which has preferably the same size as a back wall of a pack.
Further, with such a size of a panel-shaped joint piece, both sides thereof can be used for branding to a maximum surface extent as such a pack size may allow.
In addition, it is possible to provide different information and branding in each of said unfolded areas provided by one back panel of a pack and the two sides of panel of the joint piece.
To support this intriquing and amusing Jacob's Ladder sing effect, which is similar to, there is a counter-joint band, which coacts alternatively with the first or the second hinge means according to the intended unfolding movement for opening the twin-pack either from the right side or the left side from the initial mutual abutment position of the packs.
Concerning the arrangement of the counter-joint band, it is preferred that this band reaches with its fixed end portions through the hinges of the joint piece in both unfolding positions, respectively. This means that the counter-joint band comprises a hinge portion close to both ends thereof, each of said hinge portions have the same hinge axis as the first or the second hinge of the joint piece, respectively, depending on the use of that hinge which is active with the unfolding of counter-foldable twin-pack.
The counter-joint band itself is attached only with its end portions outside said hinges to the front wall of the displayed pack, depending on the unfolding side, i.e., whether the twin-pack is unfolded from the left or from the right. Thus, the hinges of the counter-joint band are probably arranged so that they subdivide the first hinge and second hinge of the joint piece into interrupted portions.
According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the panel of the joint piece covers the back panel of the pack except for an area provided for the counter-joint band for which the other pack is folded away. Advantageously, this allows for different branding areas on one hand, and on the other hand, the counter-joint band can be formed as a part of the joint piece itself with cut-out hinged end portions and a notched central portion. This central portion can be torn off with the first opening of the pack from the initial mutual abutment position thereby advantageously providing a kind of seal proofness for the buyer of the twin-pack. Preferably, the first and second hinge means are provided at opposite side edges of the panel, respectively.
According to a preferred embodiment, each of said packs has a lid hinged to the upper portion of the front wall to allow access to an opening for taking out cigarettes, and each lid is preferably in its closed position flush with the side walls and the back panel.
The packs can have the same size or different sizes, for example the first pack can house seven cigarettes, and the second pack thirteen cigarettes.
According to a further advantageous embodiment of the invention, the packs may have associated reclosing means which allow the packs also to be kept in abutment after the first opening of the twin-pack. Said closing means are preferably integrated in the packs, in particular in an area close to the hinges of the counter-joint band on respective outsides of the counter-joint band to match with cut-out portions provided in the panel of the joint piece.
The closing means may comprise low tack glue dots, consist of a Velcro^® or comprise magnetic strips.
Preferably, the joint piece including the counter-joint band is cut from a single blank of thin doubled coated cardboard, whereas the packs are made of a single blank of cardboard having one face coated for applying information or branding.
Further features of the invention, its nature and various advantageous modifications will be more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following description of a preferred embodiment. The drawings show in:

Fig. 1: a front view of a back panel of a first box-shaped pack of the twin-pack for cigarettes according to the invention;
Fig. 2: a right side view of the twin-pack shown in Fig. 1 with both packs in their abutment position;
Fig. 3: the twin-pack of Fig. 2 in its first unfolded position with the first pack on the left side and the second mega pack on the right side;
Fig. 4: a right side view of the unfolded twin-pack shown in Fig. 3, however with the lid of the second pack fully open;
Fig. 5: a left side view of the twin-pack shown in Fig. 1 with the first and second pack being in abutment;
Fig. 6: the twin-pack unfolded from the left side with the second pack on the left and the first pack on the right in the second opening position of the twin-pack;
Fig. 7: a right side view on the twin-pack in its unfolded second condition according to Fig. 6, however with the lid of the first pack fully open; and
Fig. 8: a cut-out blank for a joint piece.

Fig. 1 shows a front view of a preferred embodiment of a twin-pack 10 for cigarettes according to the invention. From the twin-pack 10 Fig. 1 shows only a front wall 11 of a first box-shaped pack 12 whereas a front wall 18 of a second box-shaped pack 14 has the same size and is not visible in Fig. 1, since it forms the back side of the pack 10.
Fig. 2 to 4 show a right side view, an unfolded view when unfolding from the right (Fig. 3) and a left side view (Fig. 4) of the first unfolded position according to Fig. 3, however with an opened lid 13 of the second box-shaped pack 14.
In this embodiment, the pack 12 is smaller than the pack 14. The pack 12 provides for housing seven cigarettes, whereas the pack 14 provides for thirteen cigarettes. Both packs 12 and 14 are made from a single blank of a cardboard having one face coated for applying information or branding.
The first pack 12 comprises a lid 15, which is hinged in the upper portion of the front wall 11 by a hinge 16. The lid 13 of the pack 14 is hinged to the upper portion of the front wall 18 by means of a hinge 17, provided by a weakened line in the cardboard.
The first pack 12 of the twin-pack 10 has a shape of a box with the front wall 11, a left side wall 19, a right side wall 20 which has the same size as the left side wall 19, and a bottom wall 21.
The second pack 14 has a box-shape comprising a right side wall 22, a left side wall 23, which has the same size as the right side wall 22, and a bottom wall 24.
Further, the first pack 12 has a back panel 26 (Fig. 3 and 6), whereas the second pack 14 has a back panel 25 (Fig. 3 and 6). The right side wall 20 has a depth T₁ which is smaller than the depth T₂ of the right side wall 22 of the second pack 14.
Fig. 8 shows a cut-out of a joint piece 30 which is made from a thin double-coated cardboard. The joint piece 30 comprises a central portion 31 of the same size and shape as the front wall 11. Attached to the central portion 31 is a left side portion 32 which has essentially the same size as the right side wall 20 of the first pack 12. It has the same depth T₁ and terminates in its upper portion an inclined peak part 33 which matches the cut-out at the right side wall 20, provided for the lid 15.
On the other side of the central portion 31 is a right side portion 34 which has the shape of the left side wall 23 of the second pack 14 and has the same depth T₂ and an inclined peak part 35 to match the left side wall 23 of the second pack 14 below the lid 13. The left side portion 32 is connected to the central portion 31 by a first hinge 36, whereas the right side portion 34 is hinged to the central portion 31 by means of a second hinge 37. The hinges 36, 37 are made by weakened line in the cardboard.
Further, as can be seen from Fig. 8, the joint piece 30 comprises in its lower portion a counter-joint band 38 with a central portion 39, which is connected to the upper part 40 and the lower part 41 of the central portion 31 through notches 42, 43 which can be torn off with the first opening of the twin-pack 10 from the initial mutual abutment position of the first pack 12 and the second pack 14.
The counter-joint band 38 further comprises a left cut-out end portion 45 which is connected to the central portion 39 by means of a hinge 46. On the opposite side, the central portion 39 is connected to a right end portion 47 which is cut-out from the right side portion 34 and hinged to the central portion 39 by a hinge 48. The joint piece 30 is made from double-coated cardboard.
The central portion 31 of the joint piece 30 has a front side with an upper part 40 and a lower part 41, as a panel for providing additional information or branding and respective back side parts 40' and 41' which also form a panel for applying information or branding, see Fig. 6.
The counter-joint band 38 has opposite to his central portion 39 a back side central portion 39'. The left end portion 45 of the counter-joint band 38 is fixed on the right side wall 22 of the second pack 14, as shown in Fig. 2, with the hinge 46 being at the left edge of this side wall 22, whereas the right end portion 47 is fixed to the left side wall 19 with its hinge 48 being at the left edge of this left side wall 19 (Fig. 5). The arrangement is made so that the counter-joint band 38 reaches with its end portions 45, 47 through the hinges 36 or 37 of the joint piece 30, respectively, thereby allowing only a swivel movement of the twin-pack 10 from its closed position as shown in Fig. 2 into its first opened position, as shown in Fig. 3 or alternatively from the closed position of the twin-pack 10 as shown in Fig. 5 into the second opened position thereof, as shown in Fig. 6.
The folding of the twin-pack 10 from the state shown in Fig. 2 into the first opened position, shown in Fig. 3, is performed by making use of the second hinge 37 of the joint piece 30 and the hinge 48 of the counter-joint band 38. In both unfolding conditions, the central portion 39, 39' of the counter-joint band 38 loosely abuts the back panel 25 of the second pack 14, as shown in Fig. 3 or the back panel 26 of the first pack 12, as shown in Fig. 6.
The twin-pack 10 from the status shown in Fig. 5 is performed by making use of the first hinge 36 of the joint piece 30 and the hinge 46 of the counter-joint band 38. The first hinge 36 of the joint piece 30 stands from a lower end 55 thereof up to a height H, same as the second hinge 37 at the opposite side. In Fig. 2 and 3, the lower end of the lid 13 is 53, and as shown in Fig. 2, the upper end of the hinge 37 ends at a height H below the lower end 53 so that the lid 13 again be opened and closed without being interfered by the hinge 37. In the same way, the upper end of the hinge 36 ends at a height H, which is below the lower front end of the lid 15 of the first pack 12, so that the lid 15 can be opened in the second unfolded condition of the twin-pack 10 without interfering with the hinge 36 of the joint piece 30. In the embodiment shown, the lower end 55 of the joint piece 30 is flush with the lower wall 21 or 24 of the first pack 12 or the second pack 14.
The panel like the central portion 31 of the joint piece 30, loosely abuts in Fig. 3 the back panel 26 of the first pack 12 except for a cut-out 50, which results from tearing off the counter-joint band 38, which is provided to achieve the alternative counter foldability of the twin-pack 10.
The empty cut-out 51 shown in Fig. 2 results from folding away the end portion 45 of the counter-joint band 38 about its hinge 46 to be fixed on the right side wall 22 of the second pack 14. Fig. 8 shows that the end portion 45 is cut-out from the side wall portion 32. The empty cut-out 52 shown in Fig. 5 results from cutting out the right end portion 47 of the right side portion 34 of the joint piece 30 and the fixing of the right end portion 47 on the left side wall 19 of the first pack 12.
Both the back panels 25 and 26 of the packs 14, 12 same as the joint piece 30 are provided with non-shown closure means for reclosing the twin-pack 10 with abutment of the first and second pack 12, 14 after first opening thereof, which requires tearing off the counter-joint band 38 from the joint piece 30 at the notches 42, 43. Said non-shown closing means may comprise matching low glue dots, a Velcro® closure, matching magnetic strips or are flat reclosable means which are not visible from the outside when the twin-pack 10 is closed and which may be even integrated in associated surfaces of the packs 12, 14 and the joint piece 30 to keep the twin-pack 10 in its original pack-by-pack arrangement.

Reference signs:

10: twin-pack
11: front wall
12: first pack
13: lid of 14
14: second pack
15: lid of 13
16: hinge of 15
17: hinge of 13
18: front wall
19: left side wall of 12
20: right side wall of 12
21: bottom wall of 12
22: right side wall of 14
23: left side wall of 14
24: bottom wall of 14
25: back panel of 14
26: back panel of 12
30: joint piece
31: central portion of 30
33: peak part
34: right side portion of 30
36: left hinge of 30
37: right hinge of 30
38: counter-joint band
39: central portion of 38
39': (back side) central portion of 38
40: upper part of 31
40': back side part of upper part 40 of 31
41: lower part of 31
41': back side of lower part 41 of 31
42: notch
43: notch
45: left end portion of 38
46: hinge of 45
47: right end portion of 38
48: hinge of 47
50: cut-out
51: cut-out
52: cut-out
53: lower end of 15
54: lower end of 13
55: lower end of 30

Claims

A twin-pack (10) for cigarettes, comprising
a first and a second box-shaped pack (12; 14), each having a back panel (26; 25), a left side wall (19; 23) and a right side wall (20; 22) of the same size, a bottom wall (21; 24) and a front wall (11; 18), respectively,
wherein both packs (12; 14) are connected by a joint piece (30) having a first and a second hinge means (36; 37) with opposite opening directions, respectively, for alternatively opening the packs (12; 14) from an initial mutual abutment position either to the left or to the right about the first or the second hinge means (36; 37),
said first hinge means (36) having a portion (32) being fixed to the right side wall (20) of the first pack (12), whereas the second hinge means (37) having a right side portion (34) being fixed to the left side wall (23) of the second pack (14),
the left side wall (19) of the first pack (12) being fixed to a left end portion (45) of a counter-joint band (38), which has its right end portion (47) fixed to the right side wall (22) of the second pack (14).
The twin-pack according to claim 1, wherein the counter-joint band (38) reaches with its fixed ends (45, 47) through interrupted hinges (36, 37) of the joint piece (30) in both unfolding positions, respectively.
The twin-pack according to claim 1 or 2, wherein both the fixed ends (45, 47) of the counter-joint band (38) are linked to a central portion thereof by a hinge (46, 48), respectively.
The twin-pack according to a preceding claim, wherein the joint piece (30) comprises a central portion (31; 40, 41, 40', 41'), which abuts the back panel (26; 25) of both the packs (12; 14) in the initial abutted position thereof and only the back panel (26) of the first pack (12) or the back panel (25) of second pack (14) in the unfolded positions of the twin-pack (10), respectively.
The twin-pack according to a claim 4, wherein the first and second hinge means (36, 37) are provided at opposite side edges of the central portion (31; 40, 41, 40', 41'), respectively.
The twin-pack according to claim 4 or 5, wherein in an unfolded position, the central portion (31; 40, 41, 40', 41') of the joint piece (30) covers the back panel (26 or 25) of one pack (12 or 14) except a cut-out (50) provided for the counter-joint band (38) from which the other pack (14 or 12) is folded away.
The twin-pack according to a proceeding claim, wherein the counter-joint band (38) is formed as a part of the joint piece (30) with cut-out hinged end portions (45, 47) and a notched central portion (39, 39'), said central portion (39, 39') being torn off with the first opening of the twin-pack (10) from the initial mutual abutment position of its packs (12; 14).
The twin-pack according to a proceeding claim, wherein each of said packs (12; 14) has a lid (15; 13) hinged to the upper portion of the front wall (11; 18) to allow access to an opening for taking out cigarettes.
The twin-pack according to a claim 8, wherein the first and second hinge means (36, 37) of the joint piece (30) extend from the bottom wall (21; 24) up to the lower end (53) of the closed lids (15; 13).
The twin-pack according to claim 8 or 9, wherein each lid (15; 13) is in its closed position flush with the side walls (19, 20; 22, 23) and the back panel (26; 25) of the packs (12; 14).
The twin-pack according to a preceding claim, wherein the packs (12; 14) have different sizes.
The twin-pack according to a preceding claim, wherein the packs (12; 14) have reclosing means which allow the packs (12; 14) to be kept in abutment.
The twin-pack according to claim 12, wherein said closing means comprise low tack glue dots.
The twin-pack according to claim 12, wherein said closing means comprise a Velcro® closure.
The twin-pack according to claim 14, wherein said closing means comprise magnetic strips.
The twin-pack according to a preceding claim, wherein the joint piece (30) including the counter-joint band (38) is cut from a single blank of thin double-coated cardboard.
The twin-pack according to a preceding claim, wherein the packs (12; 14) are made of a single blank of cardboard having one face coated for applying information or branding.