EP2627568A2

EP2627568A2 - Package for articles

Info

Publication number: EP2627568A2
Application number: EP11805972.4A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Andrea Biondi; Patrizio Roila
Original assignee: GD SpA
Current assignee: GD SpA
Priority date: 2010-10-11
Filing date: 2011-10-11
Publication date: 2013-08-21
Anticipated expiration: 2031-10-11
Also published as: ITBO20110083A1; ITBO20100603A1; IT1401839B1; RU2557750C2; KR20140037792A; WO2012049701A3; ITBO20110151A1; JP5960704B2; PL2627568T3; IT1404616B1; JP2013542893A; WO2012049701A8; RU2013120971A; EP2627568B1; WO2012049701A2

Abstract

A package (1) for articles, having a container (2), which is cup-shaped to house a group of articles, and has an open end (4); a cup-shaped lid (5) hinged to the container (2) along a hinge (6) to rotate, with respect to the container (2), between an open position and a closed position opening and closing the open end (4) respectively; a collar (15) connected to the inside of the container (2) to project partly outwards of the open end (4) and engage a corresponding inner surface of the lid (5) when the lid (5) is in the closed position; and a retaining device (19) to keep the lid (5) in the closed position, and which has: a retaining seat (20) formed in a first wall (12) of the lid (5); and a retaining member (21), which projects from a second wall (16) of the collar (15), and fits inside the retaining seat (20) when the lid (5) is in the closed position.

Description

PACKAGE FOR ARTICLES

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a package for articles, and in particular to a hinged-lid package for tobacco articles.

In the following description, reference is made, for the sake of simplicity and purely by way of example, to a hinged-lid packet of cigarettes.

BACKGROUND ART

Rigid, hinged-lid packets of cigarettes are currently the most commonly marketed, by being easy to produce and easy and practical to use, and by effectively protecting the cigarettes inside.

A rigid, hinged-lid packet of cigarettes comprises a cup-shaped container having an open end; and a cup- shaped lid hinged to the container along a hinge to rotate, with respect to the container, between an open position and a closed position opening and closing the open end respectively. A U-folded collar is normally connected to the inside of the container, and projects partly outwards of the open end to engage a corresponding inner surface of the lid when the lid is in the closed position.

To hold the lid in the closed position and prevent it from opening accidentally, a retaining device is provided, designed to produce additional mechanical interaction between the collar and lid (or between the container and lid, in the absence of a collar) , so that sufficient force to produce localized elastic deformation must be applied to open the lid.

The most commonly used retaining device comprises two projections projecting laterally from the collar, and which engage the closed lid with a given amount of interference. Though effective and easy to produce, the projections have the drawback of locally deforming the lateral walls of the closed lid, and so spoiling the overall look of the packet by affecting the flatness of, and often even forming unsightly wrinkles in, the lateral walls of the lid. And the larger the projections are, i.e. the greater the retaining force produced by the projections, the more noticeable this deformation of the lateral walls of the lid is.

To eliminate these drawbacks, numerous alternative solutions have been proposed, as for example in Patents US4294399A1 and US5896984A1 and Patent Application WO2004028926A1, but have all proved either ineffective (i.e. incapable of producing sufficient retaining force) or complicated and expensive to produce.

Patent Application EP0884247A1 describes a rigid, hinged-lid packet of cigarettes with a retaining device for holding the lid in the closed position, and which comprises a tab projecting from a top edge of a collar and engaged by an edge of a flap on the lid when the lid is in the closed position.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a package for articles, designed to eliminate the above drawbacks, and which in particular is cheap and easy to produce .

According to the present invention, there is provided a package for articles, as claimed in the accompanying Claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A number of non-limiting embodiments of the present invention will be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a front view in perspective of a rigid, hinged-lid packet of cigarettes in accordance with the present invention and in the closed position;

Figure 2 shows a rear view in perspective of the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes in the closed position;

Figure 3 shows a front view in perspective of the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes in the open position;

Figures 4 and 5 show longitudinal sections of part of the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes in the closed position and open position respectively;

Figure 6 shows a plan view of a blank from which to produce a container of the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes ;

Figure 7 shows a spread-out plan view of a collar of the Figure 1 packet of cigarettes;

Figures 8 and 9 show longitudinal sections of part of a packet of cigarettes in accordance with an alternative embodiment and in the closed position and open position respectively;

Figure 10 shows a plan view of a blank from which to produce a container of the Figure 8 and 9 packet of cigarettes ;

Figure 11 shows a longitudinal section of part of a variation of the Figure 8 and 9 packet of cigarettes in the open position;

Figure 12 shows a front view in perspective of a further _ rigid, hinged-lid packet of cigarettes in accordance with the present invention and in the closed position;

Figure 13 shows a rear view in perspective of the Figure 12 packet of cigarettes in the closed position;

Figure 14 shows a front view in perspective, with parts removed for clarity, of the Figure 12 packet of cigarettes in the open position;

Figure 15 shows a spread-out plan view of a collar of the Figure 12 packet of cigarettes;

Figure 16 shows a plan view of a variation of the Figure 15 collar.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Number 1 in Figures 1, 2 and 3 indicates as a whole a rigid packet of cigarettes, comprising a cup-shaped container 2 of rigid cardboard; and an inner package 3 (Figure 3) housed inside container 2 and comprising a parallelepiped-shaped group of cigarettes (not shown) wrapped in a sheet of foil wrap. Container 2 has an open top end 4 (Figure 3); and a cup-shaped lid 5 hinged to container 2 along a hinge 6 (Figure 2) to rotate, with respect to container 2, between an open position (Figure 3) and a closed position (Figures 1 and 2) opening and closing open top end 4 respectively.

Container 2 is in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped, and comprises a bottom wall 7 opposite open top end 4; a front wall 8 and rear wall 9 opposite and parallel to each other; and two parallel lateral walls 10 interposed between walls 8 and 9. Four longitudinal edges are defined between lateral walls 10 and walls 8 and 9; and four transverse edges are defined between bottom wall 7 and walls 8, 9 and 10.

Lid 5 is in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped, and comprises a top wall 11 opposite and parallel to bottom wall 7 of container 2 when lid 5 is in the closed position; a front wall 12 and rear wall 13 opposite and parallel to each other and coplanar with walls 8 and 9 of container 2 when lid 5 is in the closed position; and two parallel lateral walls 14 interposed between walls 12 and 13 and coplanar with lateral walls 10 of container 2 when lid 5 is in the closed position. Four longitudinal edges are defined between lateral walls 14 and walls 12 and 13; and four transverse edges are defined between top wall 11 and walls 12, 13 and 14.

In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the edges are all straight, but in alternative embodiments not shown, some edges may be bevelled or rounded.

As shown in Figure 3, packet 1 also comprises a rigid collar 15 (i.e. made of rigid cardboard), which is folded into a U and connected (glued) to the inside of container 2, and projects partly outwards of open top end 4 to engage a corresponding inner surface of lid 5 in the closed position. Collar 15 comprises a front wall 16 connected to front wall 8 of container 2, and which is positioned contacting front wall 12 of lid 5 in the closed position; and two lateral walls 17 connected to lateral walls 10 of container 2, and which are positioned contacting lateral walls 14 of lid 5 in the closed position.

In the embodiment shown in the drawings, front wall 16 of collar 15 has two lateral projections 18, which engage lateral walls 14 of lid 5 in the closed position to keep lid 5 closed. In a different embodiment not shown, front wall 16 of collar 15 has no projections 18.

As shown in Figures 3, 4 and 5, packet 1 of cigarettes comprises a retaining device 19 different from and independent of projections 18, and which keeps lid 5 closed with a retaining force that must be overcome to open lid 5.

Retaining device 19 comprises a retaining seat 20 formed in front wall 12 of lid 5; and a retaining member 21, which projects from front wall 16 of collar 15, and fits inside retaining seat 20 when lid 5 is in the closed position. Figure 4 shows lid 5 in the closed position: retaining member 21 is inserted inside retaining seat 20, and, to be extracted from retaining seat 20, must be deformed elastically by either exerting light finger pressure on retaining member 21, or exerting a relatively strong opening force on lid 5 to overcome the retaining force produced by retaining device 19.

In a preferred embodiment, retaining member 21 is defined by a portion of front wall 12 of lid 5, which is glued to front wall 16 of collar 15 and separate from the rest of front wall 12 of lid 5.

Retaining member 21 is preferably detached from front wall 12 of lid 5 when unsealing lid 5. In other words, retaining member 21 is connected to the rest of front wall 12 of lid 5 along a tear line 22 (Figure 6) until lid 5 is unsealed. And, when lid 5 is unsealed, retaining member 21 remains connected to front wall 16 of collar 15, and is torn from front wall 12 of lid 5 along tear line 252. Unsealing lid 5 thus calls for greater force, which is an indication to the user that lid 5 has not been opened (and therefore packet 1 of cigarettes not tampered with) .

In the Figure 1-5 embodiment, retaining seat 20 is defined by a hole through front wall 12 of lid 5. More specifically, front wall 12 of lid 5 is defined by an inner panel 12¹¹ and outer panel 12' superimposed and glued to each other, and retaining seat 20 is defined by a hole through both panels 12', 12'' of front wall 12 of lid 5. Similarly, retaining member 21 is defined by respective mutually glued portions 21', 21'' of both panels 12', 12 ' ' of front wall 12 of lid 5. In a preferred embodiment, inner portion 21'' of retaining member 21 is larger (in area) than outer portion 21'.

In the alternative embodiment shown in Figures 8 and 9, retaining seat 20 is defined by a hole through inner panel 12'' only, and which does not affect outer panel 12' of front wall 12 of lid 5. And, similarly, retaining member 21 is defined solely by a portion 21'' of inner panel 12'' of front wall 12 of lid 5. Compared with the Figure 1-5 embodiment, the Figure 8 and 9 embodiment has the drawback of less retaining force by retaining device 19, but has the advantage of retaining device 19 being concealed from the outside (i.e. invisible from the outside of packet 1 of cigarettes) when lid 5 is in the closed position.

In the Figure 11 embodiment, retaining member 21 (which, in this case, is defined solely by inner portion 21'') is only partly glued to wall 16 of collar 15, i.e. has a first portion glued to front wall 16 of collar 15, and a remaining second portion not glued to front wall 16 of collar 15. Preferably, the first portion of retaining member 21 is glued to front wall 16 of the collar and located at the top, and the second portion of retaining member 21 not glued to front wall 16 of the collar is located at the bottom. Not being glued to front wall 16 of the collar, the second portion of retaining member 21 bends gradually each time lid 5 is opened/closed (i.e. each time retaining member 21 engages/disengages from retaining seat 20) , and then snaps back into position with a clicking sound. In other words, opening/closing lid 5 is accompanied by a clearly audible click, which is much appreciated by consumers as indicating effective closure of lid 5.

In a different embodiment not shown, retaining device 19 may be formed in one of lateral walls 14 and 17, as opposed to front walls 12 and 16. In which case, two independent retaining devices 19 may be provided in lateral walls 14 and 17 on both sides of packet 1 of cigarettes .

In the embodiment shown in the drawings, retaining member 21 and seat 20 are rounded and located in the centre of front wall 12 of lid 5 (needless to say, retaining member 21 and seat 20 must be the same shape and size) . In a different embodiment not shown, retaining member 21 and seat 20 may be other than rounded in shape (e.g. square, rectangular, rhomboidal, pentagonal, hexagonal, etc.) and/or may be off-centre with respect to front wall 12 of lid 5 (though this reduces the retaining force of retaining device 19, all other factors being equal).

As shown in Figure 6, container 2 and lid 5 are formed from a flat, substantially rectangular blank 23, the parts of which are indicated, where possible, in the following description using the same reference numbers, with superscripts, as for the corresponding parts of container 2 and lid 5. Blank 23 has two longitudinal fold lines 24, and a number of transverse fold lines 25 defining, between longitudinal fold lines 24, a panel 8' forming front wall 8 of container 2; a panel 7' forming bottom wall 7 of container 2; a panel 9' forming rear wall 9 of container 2; a panel 13' (separated from panel 9' by hinge 6) forming rear wall 13 of lid 5; a panel 11' forming top wall 11 of lid 5; outer panel 12' forming part of front wall 12 of lid 5; and inner panel 12' ' forming the rest of front wall 12 of lid 5. Inner panel 12 ' ' forms a reinforcing flap for strengthening front wall 12 of lid 5, and is folded 180° onto and glued to outer panel 12 ' .

Panel 8' has two lateral wings 10' located on opposite sides of panel 8', separated from panel 8' by longitudinal fold lines 24, and forming respective outer portions of lateral walls 10 of container 2. Panel 9' has two lateral wings 10' ' located on opposite sides of panel 9', separated from panel 9' by longitudinal fold lines 24, and forming respective inner portions of lateral walls 10 of container 2. Each wing 10' ' is connected along a transverse fold line 25 to a tab 26, which is glued to panel 7'.

Panel 12' has two lateral wings 14' located on opposite sides of panel 12', separated from panel 12' by longitudinal fold lines 24, and forming respective outer portions of lateral walls 14 of lid 5. Panel 13' has two lateral wings 14' ' located on opposite sides of panel 13', separated from panel 13' by longitudinal fold lines 24, and forming respective inner portions of lateral walls 14 of lid 5. Each wing 14' ' is connected along a transverse fold line 25 to a tab 27, which is glued to panel 11 ' .

Figure 10 shows the blank 23 from which to form container 2 and lid 5 in the Figure 8 and 9 embodiment, and which differs from the Figure 6 blank 23 by having no portion 21' in panel 12' of front wall 12 of lid 5.

As shown in Figure 7, collar 15 comprises a central appendix 28 extending upwards from front wall 16 to support retaining member 21 of retaining device 19. In other words, retaining member 21 of retaining device 19 is glued to appendix 28 extending upwards from front wall 16 of collar 15.

In the Figure 1-11 embodiments, retaining seat 20 is formed in front wall 12 of lid 5, and retaining member 21 projects from front wall 16 of collar 15 to fit inside retaining seat 20 when lid 5 is in the closed position. In the eguivalent embodiment in Figures 12-14 (with particular reference to Figure 14), retaining seat 20 is formed in front wall 16 of collar 15 (instead of front wall 12 of lid 5) , and retaining member 21 projects from front wall 12 of lid 5 (instead of front wall 16 of collar 15) to fit inside retaining seat 20 when lid 5 is in the closed position. In other words, in the equivalent embodiment in Figures 12-14, the component parts of retaining device 19 in front wall 12 of lid 5 and front wall 16 of collar 15 are simply inverted mechanically, i.e. retaining seat 20 goes from front wall 12 of lid 5 to front wall 16 of collar 15, and retaining member 21 goes from front wall 16 of collar 15 to front wall 12 of lid 5.

Figures 15 and 16 show spread-out views of two collars 15 that may be used to form the Figure 12-14 packet 1 of cigarettes. Obviously, in this case, retaining member 21 is defined by a portion of front wall 16 of collar 15, which is glued to the inside of front wall 12 of lid 5, and is separated from the rest of front wall 16 of collar 15 by tear line 22, which is torn when unsealing lid 5.

In the Figure 12-14 embodiment, too, retaining member 21 may be only partly glued to front wall 12 of lid 5, i.e. has a first portion glued to front wall 12 of lid 5, and a remaining second portion not glued to front wall 12 of lid 5.

Packet 1 of cigarettes described has numerous advantages, by being quick and easy to produce, and by keeping lid 5 in the closed position by the retaining force produced by retaining device 19. Retaining device 19 may either be concealed when lid 5 is closed (Figure 8 and 9 embodiment) and so have no effect on the look of packet 1 of cigarettes, or be visible even when lid 5 is closed (Figure 1-5 embodiment) to give packet 1 of cigarettes an unconventional look. Moreover, by virtue of retaining device 19, projections 18 may be eliminated or at any rate made smaller, by only having to produce a small part of the force necessary to keep lid 5 closed.

In view of its numerous advantages, the design of packet 1 described may also be used for producing other types of packages for tobacco articles, such as a packet of cigars or a carton of cigarettes; the latter being substantially identical to packet 1 of cigarettes described, except that it contains a group of packets of cigarettes, as opposed to a group of cigarettes.

Claims

1) A package for articles, comprising:

a container (2), which is cup-shaped to house a group of articles, and has an open end (4);

a cup-shaped lid (5) hinged to the container (2) along a hinge (6) to rotate, with respect to the container (2), between an open position and a closed position opening and closing the open end (4) respectively;

a collar (15) connected to the inside of the container (2) to project partly outwards of the open end

(4) and engage a corresponding inner surface of the lid

(5) when the lid (5) is in the closed position; and

a retaining device (19) to keep the lid (5) in the closed position and comprising: a retaining seat (20) formed in a first wall (12) of the lid (5) or in a second wall (16) of the collar (15); and a retaining member (21), which projects from the second wall (16) of the collar (15) or from the first wall (12) of the lid (5), and fits inside the retaining seat (20) when the lid (5) is in the closed position;

the package (1) being characterized in that:

a) the retaining member (21) is defined by a portion of the first wall (12) of the lid (5) , which portion has been glued to the second wall (16) of the collar (15) and is separate from the rest of the first wall (12) of the lid (5); or b) the retaining member (21) is defined by a portion of the second wall (16) of the collar (15), which portion has been glued to the first wall (12) of the lid (5) and is separate from the rest of the second wall (16) of the collar (15).

2) A package as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the retaining member (21) is detached from the first wall (12) of the lid (5) or from the second wall (16) of the collar (15) when the lid (5) is unsealed.

3) A package as claimed in Claim 2, wherein, until the lid (5) is unsealed, the retaining member (21) is connected to the rest of the first wall (12) of the lid (5) or to the rest of the second wall (16) of the collar (15) along a tear line (22).

4) A package as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to

3, wherein the retaining member (21) is only glued partly to the second wall (16) of the collar (15) or to the first wall (12) of the lid (5) in such a manner as to have a first portion glued to the second wall (16) of the collar (15) or to the first wall (12) of the lid (5), and a remaining second portion not glued to the second wall (16) of the collar (15) or to the first wall (12) of the lid (5) .

5) A package as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the first portion of the retaining member (21) glued to the second wall (16) of the collar (15) or to the first wall (12) of the lid (5) is located at the top, and the second portion of the retaining member (21) not glued to the second wall (16) of the collar (15) or to the first wall (12) of the lid (5) is located at the bottom.

6) A package as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the retaining seat (20) is defined by a hole through the first wall (12) of the lid (5) or through the second wall (16) of the collar (15).

7) A package as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the first wall (12) of the lid (5) is defined by an inner panel (12") and an outer panel (12') superimposed and glued to each other; and the retaining seat (20) is defined by a hole through both the panels (12', 12") of the first wall (12) of the lid (5).

8) A package as claimed in Claim 7, wherein the retaining member (21) is defined by respective mutually glued portions (21', 21") of both the glued panels (12', 12") of the first wall (12) of the lid (5).

9) A package as claimed in Claim 8, wherein an inner portion (21") of the retaining member (21) is larger than an outer portion (21') of the retaining member (21) .

10) A package as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the first wall (12) of the lid (5) is defined by an inner panel (12") and an outer panel (12') superimposed and glued to each other; and the retaining seat (20) is defined by a hole through the inner panel (12") but not through the outer panel (12') of the first wall (12) of the lid (5) .

11) A package as claimed in Claim 10, wherein the retaining member (21) is defined by a portion (21') of the inner panel (12") of the first wall (12) of the lid (5) .

12) A package as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 11, wherein the first wall (12) of the lid (5) is a front wall (12) of the lid (5), and the second wall (16) of the collar (15) is a front wall (16) of the collar (15) .

13) A package as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 12, wherein the collar (15) has a central appendix (28), which extends upwards from the front wall (16) and supports the retaining member (21) of the retaining device (19) .

14) A package as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 13, wherein the retaining member (21) and the retaining seat (20) are rounded.