EP3962723B1

EP3962723B1 - Method for forming a cardboard container

Info

Publication number: EP3962723B1
Application number: EP20712896.8A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Mugeni Nuamu; Michael Andersson
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2019-04-30
Filing date: 2020-03-17
Publication date: 2023-07-19
Anticipated expiration: 2040-03-17
Also published as: SE1950522A1; EP3962723A1; WO2020221502A1; SE544468C2; EP3962723C0

Description

Technical field

The present invention relates to a method for forming a cardboard container.

Background of the invention

In today's society, the transports of goods are increasing across the world. One reason for this increase is due to the global nature of the manufacturing industry. For instance, it is common that products manufactured in one part of the world have their intended market in another. One example is that smartphones for the US and European markets are typically made in Asia. A different, but related, reason for the increase of the transport of goods is the growth of online shopping in many parts of the world. As a general trend, it is becoming more common for consumers to order products from domestic and foreign online stores. In short, very large volumes of transported goods are transported around the world on a daily basis.
An inherent part of the transport of goods is the packaging used for shipping. Typical packages are made of plastics or cardboard, and come in different sizes. The packages are often manufactured by cutting folding and gluing large sheets of material into a rectangular box.
Nowadays, large issues related to the worldwide transport of goods are being heavily discussed, for instance its impact on the environment. As is generally known, the transports as such cause large emissions of, for instance, greenhouse gases. The transports of goods are therefore harmful to the environment while being associated with high economical costs due to the large volumes of transported goods.
Thus, there is room for improvements in the art relating to the environmental impact and economical costs associated with the transport of goods.
Document GB 1 1331 630 A discloses a known method for forming a cardboard container by providing several webs of cardboard material, helically winding said webs and joining the webs by means of adhesive thereby forming a cylinder having a longitudinal extension. The method further comprises cutting a plurality of slits in the cylinder by starting from a free edge portion of the cylinder, thereby forming flaps and folding the flaps along a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder, thereby forming a cardboard container.

Summary of the invention

In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for forming a cardboard container.
It is an object to mitigate, alleviate or eliminate one or more of the above-identified deficiencies in the art and disadvantages and solve at least the above mentioned problem.
According to a first aspect a method for forming a cardboard container is provided. The method comprises: providing a web of cardboard material, said web having two opposing longitudinal edge portions; helically winding the web; joining two adjacent longitudinal edge portions of the web by sewing, thereby forming a cylinder having a longitudinal extension; cutting a plurality of slits in the cylinder by starting from a free edge portion of the cylinder, thereby forming flaps; and folding the flaps along a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder, thereby forming a cardboard container.
By means of the present method, a cardboard container without staples and/or glue is allowed. Thereby, a cardboard container with a reduced impact on the environment is provided since the thread used for sewing can easily be removed from the cardboard material and thereby improve the recyclability of the cardboard container. For instance, after removing the thread used for sewing, the cardboard material may be reused for a different container. It may further reduce space requirements for waste handling associated with recycling, since a volume of the cardboard material may easily be reduced (e.g. by rolling up) when the thread has been removed (i.e. when adjacent longitudinal edge portions are no longer joined). The two adjacent longitudinal edge portions of the web may be joined by sewing with a paper-based thread, a synthetic thread, and/or an organic thread. In case the thread used for sewing is a paper-based thread, it does not need to be removed prior to recycling the cardboard material, further improving the recyclability of the cardboard container.
A further advantage of the present method is that no glue or chemicals are needed to be used when forming the cardboard container, thereby reducing an environmental impact associated with the cardboard container. The use of glue or chemicals when forming a cardboard container may as such adversely affect the environment and/or aggravate recycling of the cardboard container.
A further advantage of the present method is that a length and a width of the cylinder formed after helically winding the web of cardboard material may be set during the act of helically winding the web. Thereby defining the dimensions of the cardboard container to be formed, since the dimensions of the cardboard container is related to the length and the width of the cylinder.
A size of the cardboard container to be formed may relate to the length and/or the width of the cylinder.
A further advantage of the present method is that a size of the cardboard container to be formed may be varied in an easy manner, since the length and the width of the cylinder may be set during the act of helically winding the web. Thereby a downtime related to changing dimensions of cardboard containers to be formed may be reduced and/or negligible. A plurality of cardboard containers having different dimensions may thereby be formed with a low downtime. Thus, a plurality of cardboard containers having unique dimensions may thereby be formed with a low downtime.
A further advantage of the present method is that no glue need to be cured when forming the cardboard container, thereby reducing a time relating to forming the cardboard container.
The method may further comprise: determining a size of an object to be contained in the cardboard container to be formed; and dimensioning a cross section of the cylinder to be formed based on the determined size of the object, thereby allowing tailor making of the container with the purpose of optimizing an unused volume inside the cardboard container to be formed.
The wording "unused volume" should, within the context of this application, be construed as a portion of the volume inside the cardboard container which is not occupied by the object to be contained. This is also known as "free volume". The object to be contained may comprise shock-absorbing material. The object to be contained may comprise filler material. A skilled person realizes that an amount of shock-absorbing material and/or filler material comprised in the object to be contained may vary. For instance, clothing may need less shock-absorbing material for protection than an electronic device, such as a smartphone.
An advantage associated with optimizing an unused volume inside the cardboard container to be formed is that a consumption of cardboard material may be reduced. A reduced consumption of cardboard material may in turn reduce associated economic costs and/or the environmental impact.
A further advantage associated with optimizing an unused volume inside the cardboard container to be formed is that a volume of transported goods may be reduced. Economical costs and the environmental impact associated with the volume of transported goods may thereby be reduced.
A further advantage associated with optimizing an unused volume inside the cardboard container to be formed is that the amount of shock-absorbing material and/or filler material may be reduced. The amount of shock-absorbing material may be reduced since there is no need to choose from a number of fixed-box sizes, as the size of the cardboard container to be formed is based on the size of the object to be contained.
The method may further comprise: forming a first set of crease lines in the cardboard material, wherein the first set of crease lines is arranged to extend in a longitudinal direction of the cylinder; and folding the cylinder along the first set of crease lines, thereby providing the cylinder with a prismatic cross section as seen in a plane extending transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder.
The first set of crease lines may substantially extend in a longitudinal extension of the cardboard container to be formed, i.e. as seen in a direction from a bottom to a top thereof.
An advantage of providing the cylinder with a prismatic cross section as seen in a plane extending transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder is that a defined shape of the cardboard container to be formed may be allowed.
The first set of crease lines may be formed in the cardboard material prior to or after helically winding the web of cardboard material.
An advantage associated with forming the first set of crease lines in the cardboard material prior to helically winding the web of cardboard material instead of after helically winding the web of cardboard material is that a length of each crease line may be reduced. A size of an apparatus configured to form the first set of crease lines may thereby be reduced.
The plurality of slits may comprise slits cut along the first set of crease lines.
An advantage of the plurality of slits comprising slits cut along the first set of crease lines is that the prismatic cross section of the cylinder may be preserved when folding the flaps. The cardboard container to be formed may thereby have a prismatic cross section corresponding to the prismatic cross section of the cylinder.
The method may further comprise: forming a second set of crease lines in the cardboard material, said second set of crease lines extending in a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder; whereby the flaps are configured to be folded along said second set of crease lines.
An advantage associated with the flaps being configured to be folded along said second set of crease lines is that the prismatic cross section of the cylinder may more easily be preserved when folding the flaps. The cardboard container to be formed may thereby more easily have prismatic cross section corresponding to the prismatic cross section of the cylinder.
The method may further comprise: cutting the cylinder in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder.
An advantage associated with cutting the cylinder in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder is that dimensions of the cardboard container to be formed may be adjusted. Adjusting the dimensions of the cardboard container to be formed may thereby further optimize an unused volume inside the cardboard container to be formed.
A further advantage associated with cutting the cylinder in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder is that a plurality of cardboard containers may be formed from the cylinder. For example, the cylinder may be continuously formed according to the present method, and the cylinder is cut in cylinders having predetermined lengths. The cylinders having the predetermined lengths may subsequently be formed to cardboard containers.
The slits may be cut from two opposing free edge portions of the cylinder.
The cutting of the slits may be made after cutting the cylinder in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder.
An advantage of cutting slits from two opposing free edge portions of the cylinder is that flaps may be formed on two opposing free edge portions of the cylinder. An essentially uniform size of the cardboard container in a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder may thereby be allowed.
The flaps may form the bottom and the top of the cardboard container.
The two adjacent longitudinal edge portions may be sewn to form an overlap joint.
An advantage associated with the two adjacent longitudinal edge portions being sewn to form an overlap joint is that a structural integrity and/or a rigidity of the cardboard container may be adjusted by adjusting the overlap.
The web of cardboard material may be continuously fed from a roll of cardboard material while providing the web with a predetermined width by cutting.
An advantage associated with continuously feeding the cardboard material from a roll of cardboard material while providing the web with a predetermined with by cutting is that the width of the web may be varied.
A width of the web may be adapted to a length of the cylinder, and wherein a ratio between the length of the cylinder and the width of the web may be larger than 1.
The wording "length of the cylinder" should, within the context of this application, be construed as a length of a cylinder which is to be formed to a cardboard container. As described previously, an initial overlong cylinder may be cut in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder, thereby forming a cylindrical packaging blank which is to be formed to the cardboard container.
An advantage associated with a ratio between the length of the cylinder and the width of the web larger than 1 is that it may increase a structural integrity and/or a rigidity of the cardboard container to be formed.
The method may further comprise: perforating the cardboard material, thereby forming tear lines in the cardboard material.
An advantage associated with forming tear lines in the cardboard material is that the tear lines may simplify opening of the cardboard container to be formed after use.
A further advantage associated with forming tear lines in the cardboard material is that the formed cardboard container may be split in a plurality of individual pieces when the cardboard container is discarded, thereby reducing a volume of the discarded cardboard container. A reduced volume of the discarded cardboard container may be beneficial when, for instance, transporting the discarded cardboard container to a recycling facility.
A further advantage associated with forming tear lines in the cardboard material is that other functions, such as handles, holes etc., may be formed. For instance, handles may be formed in the cardboard container by pushing/pulling cardboard material surrounded by tear lines in to/out of the cardboard container.
A further scope of applicability of the present disclosure will become apparent from the detailed description given below. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred variants of the present inventive concept, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the scope of the inventive concept will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
Hence, it is to be understood that this inventive concept is not limited to the particular steps of the methods described or component parts of the systems described as such method and system may vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting. It must be noted that, as used in the specification and the appended claim, the articles "a", "an", "the", and "said" are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to "a unit" or "the unit" may include several devices, and the like. Furthermore, the words "comprising", "including", "containing" and similar wordings do not exclude other elements or steps.

Brief description of the drawings

The above and other aspects of the present invention will now be described in more detail, with reference to appended drawings showing embodiments of the invention. The figures should not be considered limiting the invention to the specific embodiment; instead they are used for explaining and understanding the invention.
As illustrated in the figures, the sizes of layers and regions are exaggerated for illustrative purposes and, thus, are provided to illustrate the general structures of embodiments of the present invention. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

Figure 1A illustrates a section of a web of cardboard material.
Figure 1B illustrates a roll of cardboard material.
Figure 1C illustrates a first set of crease lines formed in the cardboard material.
Figure 1D illustrates an object to be contained in the cardboard container to be formed.
Figure 1E illustrates a helically wound web of cardboard material.
Figure 1F illustrates a cylinder formed by two adjacent longitudinal edge portions of the web having been joined by sewing.
Figure 1G illustrates the cylinder with a plurality of slits.
Figure 1H illustrates a cylinder with a prismatic cross section as seen in a plane extending transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder.
Figure 1I illustrates a formed cardboard container.
Figure 2 is a block scheme of a method for forming a cardboard container.

Detailed description

The present inventive concept will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to Fig. 1A-1I and Fig. 2, in which currently preferred variants of the inventive concept are shown. This inventive concept may, however, be implemented in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the variants set forth herein; rather, these variants are provided for thoroughness and completeness, and fully convey the scope of the present inventive concept to the skilled person.
The cardboard container to be formed in illustrated in the figures is a rectangular box. The cardboard container may thereby have a bottom, a top, and sidewalls. It is to be understood that the bottom, the top, and the sidewalls of the container refers to separate sides of the cardboard container, and are therefore relative terms. A skilled person realizes that the actual shape of the cardboard container to be formed may vary, and knows how to adapt the description accordingly.
Figure 1A illustrates a section 100 of a web 110 of cardboard material. The web 110 has two opposing longitudinal edge portions 112, 114. The web 110 has a first longitudinal edge portion 112 and a second longitudinal edge portion 114. The web 110 of cardboard material may be cut in a direction 102 transverse to the extension of the longitudinal edge portions 112, 114 of said web 110. The web 110 of cardboard material may have a predetermined length along the longitudinal edge portions 112, 114 of said web 110. The web 110 of cardboard material may have a predetermined width 116 along the direction 102 transverse to the longitudinal edge portions 112, 114 of said web 110.
Figure 1B illustrates a roll 120 of cardboard material. As is exemplified in Fig. 1B, the web 110 of cardboard material may be fed continuously from the roll 120 of cardboard material in a feeding direction 122. The web 110 may be provided with a predetermined width by cutting. The cardboard material fed from the roll 120 may be cut by a cutter 124 as exemplified in Fig. 1B. The cutter 124 may comprise a cutting blade. A position of the cutter 124 may be varied in a direction transverse to the feeding direction 122, thereby the width 116 of the web 110 provided by cutting may be adjusted.
A first set of crease lines 132 may be formed in the cardboard material, as exemplified in Fig. 1C. The first set of crease lines 132 may be arranged to extend in a longitudinal direction of a cylinder 160 to be formed, as exemplified in Fig. 1F. In other words, the first set of crease lines 132 may be arranged at an angle relative to a direction transverse to the longitudinal edge portions 112, 114. The cardboard material may be perforated, thereby forming tear lines 134 in the cardboard material, as exemplified in Fig. 1C. The cardboard material may be perforated by intermittent cutting. The cardboard material may be perforated by sewing without a thread.
Figure 1D illustrates an object 140 to be contained in a cardboard container 190 to be formed. The size of the object 140 to be contained in the cardboard container 190 to be formed may be determined. The object 140 to be contained may comprise shock-absorbing material. The object 140 to be contained may comprise filler material. A skilled person realizes that a plurality of objects may be contained in the cardboard container 190 to be formed, and that a size of the plurality of objects may be determined. The size of the plurality of objects may depend on an arrangement of the plurality of objects. The plurality of objects may comprise shock-absorbing material and/or filler material.
The web 110 of cardboard material is helically wound as shown in Fig. 1E. The web 110 of cardboard material may be helically wound about a first axis 152. The first axis 152 may be substantially parallel to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder. The web 110 of cardboard material may be wound around a mandrel (not shown in the figures). A size of the mandrel may be adjustable. The helically wound web of cardboard material has an outer surface 154 and an inner surface 155. The helically wound web of cardboard material has two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158. The two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 comprises a first adjacent longitudinal edge portion 146 and a second adjacent longitudinal edge portion 148. The two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the helically wound web of cardboard material correspond to the two opposing longitudinal edge portions 112, 114 of the web 110 of cardboard material shown in Fig. 1A. The helically wound web of cardboard material has a cross section transverse to the first axis 152. A skilled person realizes that the cross section of the helically wound web of cardboard material may be determined during winding. The cross section of the helically wound web of cardboard material may relate to the size of the mandrel. In its easiest form, the cylinder may have an elliptical cross section. The cylinder may have other cross sections, e.g. triangular, quadriangular, or polyangular. The cross section of the cylinder may be based on a cross section of the mandrel. The cross section of the cardboard container 190 to be formed may relate to the cross section of the cylinder. The cross section of the helically wound web of cardboard material may be set based on the size of the object 140 to be contained in the cardboard container 190 to be formed.
In Fig. 1F, the two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 have been joined by sewing, thereby forming a cylinder 160 having a longitudinal extension. A stitch 164 related to joining the two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 by sewing is explicitly pointed out in Fig. 1F. However, it is to be understood that, even though not explicitly referenced in the figures, there is a plurality of stitches related to joining the two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 by sewing. The two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 may be joined by sewing with a paper-based thread, a synthetic thread and/or an organic thread. The longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160 may be parallel to the first axis 152 in Fig. 1E. For illustrative purposes, the helical winding of the web 110 of cardboard material (Fig. 1E) and the joining of two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 (Fig. 1F) are shown in two separate figures, however the two steps may be performed simultaneously. The first set of crease lines 132 may be aligned to extend in a longitudinal direction of the cylinder 160 as exemplified in Fig. 1F.
A cross section of the cylinder 160 may correspond to the cross section of the helically wound web of cardboard material. The cross section of the cylinder 160 may be dimensioned based on the determined size of the object 140, thereby allowing tailor making of the cardboard container 190 to be formed with the purpose of optimizing an unused volume inside the cardboard container 190 to be formed. In other words, the cardboard container 190 to be formed may be large enough to accommodate the object 140 in Fig. 1D, while reducing an unused volume inside the cardboard container 190 to be formed. In case the cardboard container 190 to be formed is to contain a plurality of objects, it is to be understood that the cross section of the cylinder 160 may be dimensioned based on the determined size of the plurality of objects. The size of the plurality of object may depend on the arrangement of the plurality of objects.
The two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 may be sewn to form an overlap joint 166. The overlap joint 166 may comprise one or more parallel lines of stitches. The line of stitches may be a straight line of stitches. The line of stitches may be a zig-zag line of stitches. Other patterns of the line of stitches may be possible. The overlap of the overlap joint 166 may vary. For instance, the overlap joint 166 may gradually change into a butt joint. An adhesive may be present on a portion of the web 110 of cardboard material. Heat may be applied to the web 110 of cardboard material while sewing, thereby activating the adhesive present on the web 110 of cardboard material. The adhesive may seal the overlap joint 166. The adhesive may be a hot-melt adhesive.
The overlap joint 166 may comprise two layers of cardboard material. The overlap joint 166 may comprise a plurality of layers of cardboard material. A structural integrity and/or a rigidity of the cylinder 160, and thereby of the cardboard container 190 to be formed, may relate to the number of layers comprised in the overlap joint 166.
The structural integrity and/or the rigidity of the cylinder 160 may be related to a distance between sewn joints. For a small distance between sewn joints, the structural integrity and/or the rigidity of the cylinder 160 may be adversely affected, since the cardboard material is perforated when joints are sewed. The distance between the sewn joints may be adapted to the width 116 of the web 110 such that the structural integrity and/or the rigidity of the cylinder 160 may be optimized.
The width 116 of the web 110 may be adapted to a length of the cylinder 160. A ratio between the length of the cylinder 160 and the width 116 of the web 110 may be larger than 1.
As exemplified in Fig. 1F, a second set of crease lines 162 may be formed in the cardboard material, said second set of crease lines 162 extending in a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160. Flaps 182 (described in relation to Fig. 1G) may be configured to be folded along said second set of crease lines 162.
The cylinder 160 exemplified in Fig. 1F, may be cut in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160, resulting in the cylinder 160 shown in Fig. 1G. The cylinder 160 may be cut along a first cutting line 168 and/or a second cutting line 169. The cylinder 160 may be cut in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder to form straight edges. The cylinder 160 may be cut in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder to form perpendicular flaps 182. The cylinder 160 may be cut in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160 to form a cylinder having a predetermined length. The cylinder 160 having the predetermined length may be formed to a cardboard container 190.
A plurality of slits in the cylinder 160 are cut starting from a free edge portion 172, 173 of the cylinder 160, thereby forming flaps 182 as exemplified in Fig. 1H. The plurality of slits may comprise slits cut along the first set of crease lines 132.
The flaps 182 may be configured to be folded along said second set of crease lines 162.
The slits may be cut from two opposing free edge portions 172, 173 of the cylinder 160, as exemplified by the cylinder in Fig. 1G.
The cylinder 160 may be folded along the first set of crease lines 132. The cylinder 160 may thereby be provided with a prismatic cross section as seen in a plane extending transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160. In the example shown in Fig. 1H, the cylinder 160 has flaps 182 formed by cutting the cylinder 160 from the free edge portion 172, 173. The flaps 182 may comprise a first set of opposing flaps 184 and/or a second set of opposing flaps 186. The first and second sets of opposing flaps 184, 186 may comprise two or more flaps 182. It is to be understood that flaps 182 may be formed on only one free edge portion 172 of the cylinder 160. In case flaps 182 are formed on only one free edge portion 172 of the cylinder 160, the other free edge portion 173 of the cylinder 160 may be closed. The other free edge portion 173 may be sealed by pressing a top free edge portion 174 in a direction towards a bottom free edge portion 176. The top free edge portion 174 and the bottom free edge portion 176 may be joined. The top free edge portion 174 and the bottom free edge portion 176 may be joined by sewing.
The cardboard container 190 is formed, as illustrated in Fig. 1I, by folding the flaps 182 along a direction 192 transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160. The cardboard container 190 may be a folded cardboard container. The cardboard container 190 may be formed by erecting the cylinder 160 to form the cardboard container 190. The object 140 to be contained may be packaged in the cardboard container 190. The cylinder 160 may be stored and/or transported prior to forming the cardboard container 190. Thus, the cylinder 160 may be a container blank which may be formed to the cardboard container 190 at a later point in time. The object 140 to be contained may be packaged at the later point in time. The cardboard container 190 may be stored or transported prior to packaging the object 140 to be contained.
A longitudinal extension of the formed cardboard container 190 may relate to the length of the cylinder 160. The longitudinal extension of the cardboard container 190 may be a height of the cardboard container 190. The cardboard container 190 may have a bottom, a top, and sidewalls. The height of the cardboard container 190 may be a distance between the bottom and the top of the cardboard container 190. The bottom and/or top of the cardboard container 190 may be formed by the flaps 182.
The cardboard container 190 may be sealed by joining the flaps 182. The flaps 182 may be joined by applying adhesives and/or adhesive tape. The flaps 182 may be joined by sewing. The flaps 182 may be joined by sewing with a paper-based thread, a synthetic thread and/or an organic thread.
Figure 2 is a box scheme of a method S200 for forming a cardboard container 190. The method S200 comprises: providing S202 a web 110 of cardboard material, said web 110 having two opposing longitudinal edge portions; helically winding S204 the web 110; joining S206 two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 by sewing, thereby forming a cylinder 160 having a longitudinal extension; cutting S208 a plurality of slits in the cylinder 160 by starting from a free edge 172, 173 portion of the cylinder 160, thereby forming flaps 182; and folding S210 the flaps 182 along a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160, thereby forming a cardboard container 190.
The step of helically winding S204 the web 110 and joining S206 two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 by sewing may be performed simultaneously.
The method S200 may further comprise: determining S212 a size of an object 140 to be contained in the cardboard container 190 to be formed; and dimensioning S214 a cross section of the cylinder 160 to be formed based on the determined size of the object 140, thereby allowing tailor making of the container 190 with the purpose of optimizing an unused volume inside the cardboard container 190 to be formed.
The unused volume may be optimized such that cardboard container 190 is large enough to contain the object 140. The unused volume may be optimized such that cardboard container 190 is large enough to contain the object 140 and shock-absorbing material. The unused volume may be optimized such that cardboard container 190 is large enough to contain the object 140 and filler material.
The method S200 may further comprise: forming S216 a first set of crease lines 132 in the cardboard material, wherein the first set of crease lines 132 is arranged to extend in a longitudinal direction of the cylinder 160; and folding S218 the cylinder 160 along the first set of crease lines 132, thereby providing the cylinder 160 with a prismatic cross section as seen in a plane extending transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160.
The plurality of slits may comprise slits cut along the first set of crease lines 132.
The method S200 may further comprise: forming S220 a second set of crease lines 162 in the cardboard material, said second set of crease lines 162 extending in a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160; whereby the flaps 182 are configured to be folded along said second set of crease lines 162.
The method S200 may further comprise: cutting S222 the cylinder 160 in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160.
The slits may be cut from two opposing free edge portions 172, 173 of the cylinder 160.
The two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 may be sewn to form an overlap joint 166.
The web 110 of cardboard material may be continuously fed from a roll 120 of cardboard material while providing the web 110 with a predetermined width by cutting.
A width 116 of the web 110 may be adapted to a length of the cylinder 160, and wherein a ratio between the length of the cylinder 160 and the width 116 of the web 110 may be larger than 1.
The method S200 may further comprise: perforating S224 the cardboard material, thereby forming tear lines 134 in the cardboard material.
The person skilled in the art realizes that the present inventive concept by no means is limited to the preferred variants described above. On the contrary, many modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the appended claims.
For example, the first set of crease lines 132 are describes as being formed prior to joining two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 by sewing. However, a skilled person realizes that the order may be reversed, or that a first portion of the first set of crease lines 132 may be formed prior to joining two adjacent edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 and a second portion of the first set of crease lines 132 may be formed after joining two adjacent edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110.
A further example is that the second set of crease lines 162 may be formed prior to joining two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 by sewing. In such case, the second set of crease lines 162 are formed such that the second set of crease lines 162 will extend in a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder 160 after joining two adjacent longitudinal edge portions 156, 158 of the web 110 by sewing.
A further example is that the cylinder may be formed to a flow pack. In such case, the cylinder may be cut in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder. The two open ends of the cylinder may be closed by sewing a top portion a bottom portion of each open end of the cylinder. Prior to joining a first and/or a last of the two open ends of the cylinder, the object to be contained may be placed inside the cylinder.
It is to be understood that a single overlong cylinder may be formed to a plurality of flow packs. A plurality of objects may be inserted into the overlong cylinder, and each of the plurality of flow packs may be formed by joining a top portion with a bottom portion of the cylinder on sides of each of the plurality of objects. The plurality of flow packs may be separated into separate flow packs by cutting the cylinder. Thereby, a plurality of packaged flow packs is formed from a single overlong cylinder.
Additionally, variations to the disclosed variants can be understood and effected by the skilled person in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims.

Claims

A method (S200) for forming a cardboard container (190), the method (S200) comprising:
providing (S202) a web (110) of cardboard material, said web (110) having two opposing longitudinal edge portions (112, 114);

helically winding (S204) the web (110);

joining (S206) two adjacent longitudinal edge portions (156, 158) of the web (110) by sewing, thereby forming a cylinder (160) having a longitudinal extension;

cutting (S208) a plurality of slits in the cylinder (160) by starting from a free edge portion (172, 173) of the cylinder (160), thereby forming flaps (182); and

folding (S210) the flaps (182) along a direction (192) transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder (160), thereby forming a cardboard container (190).
The method (S200) according to claim 1, further comprising:
determining (S212) a size of an object (140) to be contained in the cardboard container (190) to be formed; and

dimensioning (S214) a cross section of the cylinder (160) to be formed based on the determined size of the object (140), thereby allowing tailor making of the container (190) with the purpose of optimizing an unused volume inside the cardboard container (190) to be formed.
The method (S200) according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising:
forming (S216) a first set of crease lines (132) in the cardboard material, wherein the first set of crease lines (132) is arranged to extend in a longitudinal direction of the cylinder (160); and

folding (S218) the cylinder (160) along the first set of crease lines (132), thereby providing the cylinder (160) with a prismatic cross section as seen in a plane extending transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder (160).
The method (S200) according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of slits comprises slits cut along the first set of crease lines (132).
The method (S200) according to any of the preceding claims, further comprising:
forming (S220) a second set of crease lines (162) in the cardboard material, said second set of crease lines (162) extending in a direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder (160); whereby

the flaps (182) are configured to be folded along said second set of crease lines (162).
The method (S200) according to any preceding claims, further comprising:
cutting (S222) the cylinder (160) in the direction transverse to the longitudinal extension of the cylinder (160).
The method (S200) according to any preceding claims, wherein the slits are cut from two opposing free edge portions (172, 173) of the cylinder (160).
The method (S200) according to any preceding claims, wherein the two adjacent longitudinal edge portions (156, 158) are sewn to form an overlap joint (166).
The method (S200) according to any preceding claims, wherein the web (110) of cardboard material is continuously fed from a roll (120) of cardboard material while providing the web (110) with a predetermined width by cutting.
The method (S200) according to any preceding claims, wherein a width (116) of the web (110) is adapted to a length of the cylinder (160), and wherein a ratio between the length of the cylinder (160) and the width (116) of the web (110) is larger than 1.
The method (S200) according to any preceding claims further comprising:
perforating (S224) the cardboard material, thereby forming tear lines (134) in the cardboard material.