EP4192761A1

EP4192761A1 - Pack for smoking articles and corresponding blank

Info

Publication number: EP4192761A1
Application number: EP21763149.8A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Fiorenzo Draghetti; Luca TAROZZI
Original assignee: IMA Industria Macchine Automatiche SpA
Current assignee: IMA Industria Macchine Automatiche SpA
Priority date: 2020-08-04
Filing date: 2021-08-03
Publication date: 2023-06-14
Also published as: CN116368080A; WO2022029814A1

Abstract

Rigid pack (10; 100) for smoking articles (500) with a polygonal cross- section comprising a container (11) and a closable lid (12), hinged to the container (11) in order to rotate between a closed position and an open position.

Description

“PACK FOR SMOKING ARTICLES AND CORRESPONDING BLANK”

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments described here concern a rigid-type pack for smoking articles able to contain, for example, tobacco-based products, such as traditional smoking articles, like cigarettes or small cigars.

Embodiments described here also concern a blank, to produce said pack. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Packs for smoking articles of the rigid type, having a hinged lid, are known. These traditional cigarette packs have the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped and comprise a container or box-like body to which the lid is hinged. An internal envelope to contain the cigarettes is also provided. For example, the internal envelope can be a laminated metal film on a paper substrate or a metallized paper that is wrapped around the cigarettes and folded at the ends of the cigarettes. Inside the container, a collar may also be present, generally made of cardboard or rigid paper, which at least partly surrounds the internal envelope.

Such packs are generally easy to produce starting from a conventional blank, that is, from a sheet-like material such as cardboard, thin cardboard, paper or suchlike, suitably shaped and worked, and are easy and practical to use, protecting the smoking articles placed inside them.

The pack is typically covered with a transparent film of the disposable type, for example cellophane, polyethylene, or other similar material, which then forms an external packaging envelope or wrapper for the pack.

In some cases, the presence of this film is not welcome, especially when it is desired to avoid using a plastic material for wrapping the pack.

The pack also generally comprises a label, a revenue stamp, or a government stamp, positioned on the surface of the pack and intended to be tom when the pack is first opened.

In some cases, the government stamp might not always be present in the form of a physical adhesive label.

In general, since there is a strong need to ensure the integrity of the pack before using the cigarettes it contains, it is known to also provide specific antitampering elements, so-called “tamper evident” or “tamper proof’ elements, present on the pack in particular to make it obvious, before it is first used, if the pack has been opened or not by other subjects other than the final consumer. For example, these specific anti-tampering elements can be formed by removable or tear-off portions. In this case, the opening of the pack is allowed only after these removable or tear-off portions have been removed.

Generally, these removable or tear-off portions are temporarily connected both to the lid and also to the containing body, by means of a respective tear-off line, perforated or weakened.

Examples of packs provided with anti-tampering elements formed by removable or tear-off portions are described in patent documents US 5.678.690 A, DE 10 20118127739 Al and US 9.340.347 B2.

In the known packs described by these documents, the anti-tampering elements are generally disposed on the front wall of the pack and, because of their location and disposition, they can be inconvenient for the user to grasp. Furthermore, since the front wall of the pack is the one on which writings, logos or information images are affixed, the location of the anti-tampering elements in known packs can compromise the correct readability of such messages or images, given that they could be modified considerably, after the removal of the tear-off portion when the pack is first opened, with the result of also having an aesthetically unpleasant front wall.

These known packs are made from suitably shaped cardboard blanks which comprise pre-weakened fold lines along which the panels that form the blank are folded so as to form the pack.

The blanks used to produce the packs that have said removable portions require the creation of a pair of tear lines in a position interposed between a panel of the container and a panel of the lid, with consequent design constraints.

There is therefore a need to make available a pack for smoking articles and a corresponding blank that can be free from the design constraints typical of the state of the art.

In particular, one purpose of the present invention is to provide a pack for smoking articles that has at least one breakable anti-tampering element that is easy to make and that at the same time is easy to remove and that does not disfigure the final appearance of the pack. It is also a purpose of the present invention to make available a blank that is easy to work, that allows the operations to produce the pack to be made faster and less laborious and that can be worked on traditional wrapping machines for cigarette, without needing to make changes to traditional wrapping machines.

The Applicant has devised, tested and embodied the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the state of the art and to obtain these and other purposes and advantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is set forth and characterized in the independent claims, concerning, respectively, a rigid pack for smoking articles with a polygonal cross-section and a blank to produce a rigid pack for smoking articles with a polygonal cross-section formed by a single piece. The dependent claims describe other characteristics of the invention or variants to the main inventive idea.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other aspects, characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of some embodiments, given as a non-restrictive example with reference to the attached drawings wherein:

- fig. 1 is a perspective view of a pack for smoking articles in accordance with an embodiment described here which shows a configuration before its first use;

- fig. 2 is a perspective view of a variant of the pack of fig. 1, shown in a configuration before its first use;

- fig. 3 is a perspective view of the pack of fig. 1 in which the removable portion has been tom off and the lid is raised in the open position;

- fig. 3 a shows an enlarged detail of fig. 3;

- fig. 4 shows a perspective view of the pack of fig. 1 in a closed configuration and without the removable portion because previously tom;

- fig. 5 is a top view of the pack of fig. 1 ;

- figs. 6-7 are lateral views of the pack of fig. 1 ;

- fig. 8 is a section view, enlarged and interrupted, taken along line VIII- VIII of fig- 5;

- fig. 9 is a perspective view of a variant of a pack for smoking articles in accordance with an embodiment according to the present invention, in which the removable portion is glued to the collar;

- fig. 10 is an enlarged detail of fig. 9;

- fig. 11 is a partial and transverse section of the pack of fig. 9 along a vertical plane in a configuration before the first use;

- fig. 12 shows a blank to produce the pack of figs. 1, and 3-8;

- fig. 13 shows a blank to produce the pack of fig. 2, in which the removable portion is present on both lateral walls of the lid;

- fig. 14 shows a blank to produce the pack of figs. 9-11.

To facilitate comprehension, the same reference numbers have been used, where possible, to identify identical common elements in the drawings. It is understood that elements and characteristics of one embodiment can conveniently be combined or incorporated into other embodiments without further clarifications.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS

We will now refer in detail to the possible embodiments of the invention, of which one or more examples are shown in the attached drawings, by way of a non-limiting illustration. The phraseology and terminology used here is also for the purposes of providing non-limiting examples.

The embodiment shown in figs. 1-8 concerns a rigid pack 10 for smoking articles 500 with a polygonal cross-section. In the example described here, the pack 10 has the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped.

In this description, with the expression “smoking articles” we mean for example cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos or other similar and comparable articles.

The pack 10 comprises a container 11 and a closable lid 12 hinged to the container 11.

The container 11 has a container front wall 13 and an opposite container rear wall 14, a first container lateral wall 15 and a second container lateral wall 16, opposite and facing each other, and a lower wall 17 disposed perpendicular to the first container lateral wall 15 and to the second container lateral wall 16, figs. 1- 2.

The container 11 defines an internal cavity 18 configured to house the smoking articles 500, fig. 3.

The lid 12 has a lid front wall 19, a first lid lateral wall 20 and a second lid lateral wall 21 opposite and facing each other, and an upper wall 22 disposed perpendicular to the first lid lateral wall 20 and to the second lid lateral wall 21.

Here and hereafter in the description, the terms front, rear, lateral, upper and lower refer to the orientation of the pack 10 during its typical use. In particular, the term front refers to the front part of the pack 10 from which the cigarettes or smoking articles 500 contained therein can be accessed once the lid 12 has been opened.

The lid 12 is hinged to the container 11 in order to rotate between a closed position, to prevent access to the internal cavity 18 of the container, fig. 2 and fig. 4, and an open position, to allow access to the internal cavity 18 of the container

11, fig. 3.

When the lid is in the closed position:

- the upper wall 22 is located opposite the lower wall 17,

- the lid front wall 19 with the container front wall 13 lie on a common pack front plane Pl (figs. 5-7),

- the first lid lateral wall 20 with the first container lateral wall 15 lie on a common first pack lateral plane P3 (fig. 5),

- the second lid lateral wall 21 with the second container lateral wall 16 lie on a common second pack lateral plane P4 (fig. 5).

According to one aspect of the present invention, the lid 12 includes a removable portion 24 defined by a respective tear line 25 and which extends from an edge of the lid 12. The removable portion 24 is joined to the container 11 only by gluing, so that it has to be tom from the lid 12 along the tear line 25 at the first opening of the pack 10.

In the embodiment of fig. 1, the lid 12 includes only one removable portion, connected to the first lid lateral wall 20.

In the variant of fig. 2, the lid 12 includes, on the other hand, two removable portions, one connected to the first lid lateral wall 20 and one to the second lid lateral wall 21.

In the pack 10 there are therefore no other tear lines other than the one that allows the temporary connection between the removable portion 24 and the lid

12.

In particular, there are no tear lines between the removable portion 24 and the container 11 , the only tear line is the one that binds the removable portion 24 to the lid 12.

As shown for example in figs. 1-2, the temporary attachment of the removable portion 24 to the container 11 is ensured only by a glue point 35.

The removable portion 24 advantageously acts as an anti-tampering element. For example, the pack 10 can generally be supplied or sold to the final consumer with the lid 12 closed and connected, as stated by glue, to the container 11 by means of the at least one removable portion 24. If the removable portion 24 is intact, that is, not tom from the lid 12, this indicates to the final consumer that the pack 10 has not already been opened by others. Conversely, if the removable portion 24 of the pack 10 is tom or removed from the lid 12 before the first use by the final consumer, this indicates that the pack 10 has been tampered with.

According to some embodiments, the at least one removable portion 24 is an extension of the first lid lateral wall 20 and/or of the second lid lateral wall 21. For example, the removable portion 24 can be a flap, a tab, a wing, a fold that extends from an edge of the lid 12. This extension is temporary, since the removable portion 24 is bound to the lid along the tear line 25 and has to be tom off in order to open the lid 12.

The at least one removable portion 24 is normally coplanar with the respective first lid lateral wall 20 and/or with the second lid lateral wall 21.

The tear line 25 delimits the lid lateral wall 20 with respect to the removable portion 24 defining respective edges. The tear line 25 is able to separate the lid lateral wall 20 from the removable portion 24.

The tear line 25 can be, for example, made by having perforations, notches, dotting or weakening able to facilitate the detachment of the removable portion 24 from the first lid lateral wall 20 and/or from the second lid lateral wall 21.

The tear line 25 can define a first free lid lateral edge 20a and/or a second free lid lateral edge 21a respectively of the first lid lateral wall 20 and of the second lid lateral wall 21, for the entire length of the edge or only for a part of it, and a first removable portion edge 24a of the removable portion 24, fig. 6. The first removable portion edge 24a, which before the removable portion 24 is tom from the lid 12 lies on the tear line 25, has a shorter length than that of the first free lid lateral edge 20a and/or of the second free lid lateral edge 21a from which the removable portion 24 extends.

According to one embodiment, shown in figs. 3-3a and fig. 4, the first container lateral wall 15 includes a first container internal lateral wall 15a and a first container external lateral wall 15b joined and overlapping each other.

Likewise, the second container lateral wall 16 includes a second container internal lateral wall 16a and a second container external lateral wall 16b joined and overlapping each other, see for example the section shown in fig. 8.

In some embodiments, the at least one removable portion 24 is glued, as described above, onto the first container internal lateral wall 15a and/or onto the second container internal lateral wall 16a.

The first lid lateral wall 20 and the second lid lateral wall 21 with respectively the first container external lateral wall 15b and with the second container external lateral wall 16b lie respectively on the common first pack lateral plane P3 and on the common second pack lateral plane P4, fig. 5.

According to some embodiments, at least one of either the first container internal lateral wall 15a or the second container internal lateral wall 16a has a greater extension respectively than the first container external lateral wall 15b and the second container external lateral wall 16b, figs. 3-3a, fig. 4 and fig. 8.

The difference in extension defines a protruding portion of first container internal lateral wall 15a and/or of second external lateral wall 16a, and which therefore exceeds the above respective first container external lateral wall 15b and second container external lateral wall 16b, which therefore ends earlier; this protruding portion delimits a positioning zone 36, outlined with a dashed line in fig. 3a so as to be easily identified, on the first container internal lateral wall 15a and/or on the second container internal lateral wall 16a, suitable to allow to position and glue the removable portion 24.

The edge of the first container external lateral wall 15b and/or of the second container external lateral wall 16b, smaller than the above respective first container internal lateral wall 15a and second container internal lateral wall 16a, defines a step 37 having a thickness equal to the thickness of the first container external lateral wall 15b and/or of the second container external lateral wall 16b, fig. 8.

According to possible embodiments, the removable portion 24 can have a polygonal shape, preferably with a rounded gripping zone or edge. However, it is not excluded that the removable portion 24 can also have a different shape.

According to possible embodiments, the shape of the removable portion 24 can favorably be complementary to or mating with the shape of the positioning zone 36, possibly having, as stated, a rounded edge for better comfort when gripping and operating. Favorably, in particular, the removable portion 24 has a thickness substantially equal to the thickness of the step 37. In this way, when the lid 12 is closed, the removable portion 24 is inserted in the positioning zone 36, without protruding from the overall size of the pack 10, and is essentially flush and coplanar with the first container external lateral wall 15b or, respectively, with the second container external lateral wall 16b. This solution allows to obtain a pack 10 without substantial discontinuities and therefore aesthetically pleasing to the eye and pleasant to the touch.

The removable portion 24 has the first removable portion edge 24a defined along the tear line 25, and a second removable portion edge 24b that meets an upper edge of the first container external lateral wall 15c and/or an upper edge of the second container external lateral wall 16c, before the first opening of the pack 10. As clearly visible in fig. 6, the removable portion 24 has a substantially triangular shape and also has a third removable portion edge 24c substantially aligned with a corresponding lateral edge of the container rear wall 14, before the first opening of the pack. In other words, the third removable portion edge 24c is substantially parallel to an edge formed between the first and/or the second container lateral wall 15, 16 and the container rear wall 14, before the first opening of the pack.

In the example provided here, the removable portion 24 has a substantially triangular conformation and is perimetrically delimited by the first, second and third removable portion edges 24a, 24b and 24c.

The removable portion 24 may have, as stated, a rounded gripping zone or edge to facilitate gripping by the user, for example the comer between the second removable portion edge 24b and the third removable portion edge 24c. For example, this rounded gripping zone or edge can be raised with a finger to facilitate the detachment of the removable portion 24 from the container 11.

The second and third removable portion edges 24b, 24c meet forming a rounded comer, so as to create a gripping portion 24d comprising the rounded comer; this gripping portion 24d being easily raised with a finger to allow the removable portion 24 to be detached from the container 11 before the removable portion 24 is tom from the lid 12 along the respective tear line 25 at the first opening of the pack.

The rounded comer formed between the second and the third removable portion edges 24b, 24c has a radius of curvature comprised between 1 and 4 mm.

It should be noted that the first and/or the second container internal lateral wall 15a, 16a has/have a zone 15d, 16d not occupied by the removable portion 24, in proximity to the gripping portion 24d of the removable portion 24, before the first opening of the pack 10.

According to some embodiments, the first lid lateral wall 20 and the second lid lateral wall 21 have respectively the first free lid lateral edge 20a and the second free lid lateral edge 21a inclined with respect to a pack upper plane P5 lying on the upper wall 22, figs. 6-7.

If the removable portion 24 is not present on one of the lid lateral walls 20, 21, the first free lid lateral edge 20a or the second free lid lateral edge 21a is already completely defined, fig. 7. On the lid lateral wall 20, 21 where the removable portion 24 is present, as can be seen from fig. 6, a part of the first free lid lateral edge 20a is defined along the tear line 25.

According to some embodiments, shown in figs. 6-7, the upper edge of the first container external lateral wall 15c and the upper edge of the second container external lateral wall 16c are inclined with respect to the lid upper plane P5.

With particular reference to fig. 6, at least a first segment 15c’ of the upper edge of the first container external lateral wall 15c has the same inclination as the corresponding first free lid lateral edge 20a defining a lateral abutment for the lid 12 in the closed position.

The upper edge of the first container external lateral wall 15c has a second segment 15c” having a different inclination with respect to the inclination of the respective first segment 15c’, substantially equal to that of the second removable portion edge 24b, before the first opening of the pack. The second removable portion edge 24b is, therefore, only close to the second segment 15c”. Consequently, the first segment 15c’ meets the first free lid lateral edge 20a and/or the second free lid lateral edge 21a, since it is parallel to them in a condition in which the lid 12 is closed, while the second segment 15c” is parallel and close to the second removable portion edge 24b, before the removable portion 24 is torn from the lid 12.

The first and second segments 15c’, 15c” are inclined in a specular manner, with respect to each other, starting from a common vertex V, by an angle of inclination a with respect to a vertical axis passing through the common vertex V (fig- 6).

Similar considerations apply if there is also a removable portion 24 on the other side of the lid 12.

According to some embodiments, the lid front wall 19 has a lid front wall edge 19a which meets a container front wall upper edge 13a defining a front abutment for the lid 12 in the closed position, fig. 3.

According to some embodiments, the lid front wall 13 is without the at least one removable portion 24. In this way, the front part of the pack 10, which is the one on which writings, logos or information images are placed, has an available visual surface which is not affected by discontinuities or interruptions.

According to some embodiments, the lid 12 is hinged along a hinging line 26 located on the container rear wall 14, fig. 1.

The lid 12 comprises a lid rear wall 23 opposite the lid front wall 19 and with smaller sizes than the latter, fig. 1 and fig. 4.

The lid rear wall 23 with the second container rear wall 14 lies on a common pack rear plane P2, when the lid is in the closed position, figs. 6-7.

With reference to the section shown in fig. 8, the first lid lateral wall 20 includes a first lid internal lateral wall 20b and a first lid external lateral wall 20c joined and overlapping each other.

Likewise, the second lid lateral wall 21 includes a second lid internal lateral wall 21b and a second lid external lateral wall 21c joined and overlapping each other.

The at least one removable portion 24 is a temporary extension of the first lid external lateral wall 20c and/or the second lid external lateral wall 21c.

The tear line 25 coincides with the terminal edge of the first lid internal lateral wall 20b and/or the second lid internal lateral wall 21b, consequently it is defined on at least one of either the first lid external lateral wall 20c or the second lid external lateral wall 21c.

According to some embodiments, the pack 10 also comprises a collar 27 located inside the container 11 and having a collar front wall 28 and opposite first collar lateral wall 29 and second collar lateral wall 30 respectively in contact with the container front wall 1 , with the first container lateral wall 15 and with the second container lateral wall 16. The collar front wall 28 has an aperture 31 with a U-shaped conformation and protrudes from the top of the container 11, fig. 9.

The collar front wall 28 and at least one of either the first collar lateral wall 29 or the second collar lateral wall 30 define, as a whole, a collar protruding portion 32 with respect to the container 11, outlined by way of example with a dashed line in fig. 9, projecting from the container 11.

The embodiments shown in figs. 9-11 also concern a pack 100 comprising a container 11, a lid 12 and the collar 27, in which the at least one removable portion 24 is joined to the collar protruding portion 32 only by gluing, so that the at least one removable portion 24 has to be tom from the lid 11 along the respective tear line 25 at the first opening of the pack 100.

The temporary attachment of the removable portion 24 to the collar 27 is ensured, for example, only by a glue point 35, in a manner similar to that described previously.

For example, the at least one removable portion 24 is glued onto the protruding portion 32 of the first collar lateral wall 29 and/or of the second collar lateral wall 30.

The upper edge of the first container lateral wall 15c and/or the upper edge of the second container lateral wall 16c defines a step 38 having a thickness substantially equal to the thickness of the first container lateral wall 15 and/or of the second container lateral wall 16, fig. 11.

The removable portion 24 can have a thickness substantially equal to the thickness of the step 38, so that the pack 100 is without substantial discontinuities and therefore pleasant to the touch, fig. 11 , as described above with reference to the embodiments of figs. 1-8.

According to the embodiment shown in figs. 9-11, at least one of either the first container internal lateral wall 15a or the second container internal lateral wall 16a has an extension equal respectively to the first container external lateral wall 15b and to the second container external lateral wall 16b. With reference to fig. 10, by suitably limiting the extension of the first container internal lateral wall 15a and of the first container external lateral wall 15b, it is possible to define a positioning zone 36 on the protruding portion 32 of the first collar lateral wall 29.

In order to guarantee that the first container lateral wall 15 and/or the second container lateral wall 16 is/are planar with the removable portion 24, the latter consists of a pair of identical flaps overlapping and glued to each other in order to have a thickness equal to the height of the step 38, fig 11.

It is quite clear that the removable portion 24 can have the same conformation already described above with reference to the embodiment of figs. 1-8, for example having a triangular shape and being perimetrically delimited by the first, second and third removable portion edges 24a, 24b, 24c. As previously mentioned, the second and third removable portion edges 24b, 24c meet forming a rounded comer, so as to create a gripping portion 24d that comprises the rounded corner and is easily raised with a finger to allow to detach the at least one removable portion 24 from the collar 32 before the former is tom from the lid 12 along the respective tear line 25 at the first opening of the pack 100.

With reference to fig. 12, we will now describe an embodiment of a blank, indicated as a whole by reference number 200 and usable to produce the pack 10 of figs. 1-8. Advantageously, it is provided that the pack 10 is produced starting from a single blank 200.

It should be noted that the various adjacent panels described below with reference to the embodiments of figs. 12-14 are separated by folding lines, that is, lines made on the shaped sheet, or blank, 200, 300, 400 such as incised lines, or lines punched in segments, or pre-creased lines, or lines pre-creased in segments, along which it is provided to execute a fold in order to produce the packs 10, 100 described above.

The blank 200 comprises a container front panel 213 intended to form the container front wall 13 and a container rear panel 214 intended to form the container rear wall 14 to be disposed opposite the container front wall 13. Between the container front panel 213 and the container rear panel 214 there is interposed a lower panel 217 intended to form the lower wall 17.

At the flanks of the container front panel 213 there are respectively a first container external lateral panel 215b and a second container external lateral panel 216b.

At the flanks of the container rear panel 214 there are respectively a first container internal lateral panel 215a and a second container internal lateral panel 216a. The overlapping and gluing between the first container internal lateral panel 215a and the first container external lateral panel 215b, and between the second container internal lateral panel 216a and the second container internal lateral panel 216b are intended to form respectively the first container lateral wall 15 and the second container lateral wall 15, to be disposed opposite each other and perpendicular to the lower wall 17 so as to create a container 11 defining an internal cavity 18 configured to house smoking articles 500.

The first container internal lateral panel 215a and the second container internal lateral panel 216a have an identical size.

The blank 100 also comprises a lid front panel 219 intended to form the lid front wall 19.

At the flanks of the lid front panel 219 there are respectively a first lid lateral panel 220 and a second lid lateral panel 221 intended to form respectively the first lid lateral wall 20 and the second lid lateral wall 21 to be disposed opposite each other, and an upper panel 222 intended to form the upper wall 22 to be disposed perpendicular to the first lid lateral wall 20 and to the second lid lateral wall 21.

The upper panel 222 is interposed between the container rear panel 214 and the lid front panel 219, the hinging line 26 of the lid 12 lying on the container rear panel 214.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the blank 200 also comprises at least one removable portion 24, as described above, defined by a tear line 25 and extending from an edge of at least one of either the first lid lateral panel 220 or the second lid lateral panel 221. The at least one removable portion 24 is sized and configured to be joined only by gluing to the first container internal lateral panel 215a and/or to the second container internal lateral panel 216a. According to some embodiments, the first lid lateral panel 220 is formed by a first lid internal lateral panel 220b and a first lid external lateral panel 220c from which the removable portion 24 extends. The overlapping and gluing between the first lid internal lateral panel 220b and the first lid external lateral panel 220c is intended to form the first lid lateral wall 220.

Similarly, the second lid lateral panel 221 comprises a second lid internal lateral panel 221b and a second lid external lateral panel 221c which, once overlapping and glued to each other, are intended to form the second lid lateral wall 221.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the blank 200 can also comprise a lid internal front panel 219a joined to the lid front panel 219 along a folding line and having a smaller size than the latter. The lid internal front panel 219a, once folded, overlaps the lid front panel 219 on the internal side of the lid 12.

The blank 200 can also comprise a pair of flaps 222a joined along a folding line respectively to the first lid internal lateral panel 220b and to the second lid internal lateral panel 221b to be disposed, once folded, against the upper panel 222 in the internal part of the lid 12.

The blank 200 can also comprise a pair of flaps 217a joined along a folding line respectively to the first container internal lateral panel 215a and to the second container internal lateral panel 216a to be disposed, once folded, against the lower panel 217 in the internal part of the container 11.

At least one of either the first container external lateral panel 215b or the second container external lateral panel 216b has a smaller size than the container internal lateral panels 215a, 216a.

In this way, when the first and second container internal lateral panels 215a, 216a and respectively the first and second container external lateral panels 215b, 216b are reciprocally overlapping and glued to each other, a portion of at least one of the container internal lateral panels 215a, 216a exceeds the respective container external lateral panel 215b, 216b to define the positioning zone 36 to glue the removable portion 24.

In the embodiment of fig. 12, in which the removable portion 24 is present only on the first lid lateral panel 220, the second container internal lateral panel 216a and the second container external lateral panel 216b have an identical extension and mating shape.

With reference to the embodiment of fig. 13, a blank 200 to produce the pack of fig. 2 is shown, in which there are removable portions 24 on both the first and also the second lid lateral panels 220, 221.

In this case, both the first container external lateral panel 215b and also the second container external lateral panel 216b have a smaller size than the respective container internal lateral panels 215a, 216a.

In this way, when the first and second container internal lateral panels 215a, 216a and respectively the first and second container external lateral panels 215b, 216b are reciprocally overlapping and glued to each other, a portion of both the container internal lateral panels 215a, 216a exceeds the respective container external lateral panels 215b, 216b to define the positioning zone 36 to glue the removable portion 24 on both the flanks of the pack 10.

The positioning zone 36, as well as the removable portion 24, have a substantially triangular conformation, perimetrically delimited by the first removable portion edge 24a along the tear line 25, by a second removable portion edge 24b, intended to meet an inclined edge of the first container internal lateral panel 215a and/or of the second container internal lateral panel 216a, and by a third removable portion edge 24c intended to be disposed, before the first opening of the pack, substantially parallel to a folding line that separates the container rear panel 214 from the first container internal lateral panel 215a and/or from the second container internal lateral panel 216a, indicated with “L” in figs. 12-14.

The second and third removable portion edges 24b, 24c meet forming a rounded comer, so as to create a gripping portion 24d comprising the rounded comer.

The embodiments shown in fig. 14 show a blank 400 that can be used to produce the pack 100 of figs. 9-11. Also in this case, it is advantageously provided that the pack 100 is produced starting from a single blank 400.

In the example proposed in fig. 14, there is a removable portion 24 disposed only on the first lid lateral panel 220. This does not exclude that the removable portion 24 can be disposed on both lid lateral panels 220, 221 in the same way as what described for the blank 300 of fig. 13.

In this specific case, the removable portion 24 is configured as a pair of flaps, of which a first flap is made on the first lid external lateral panel 220c and a second flap is made on the first lid internal lateral panel 220b.

The overlapping and gluing between the first lid internal lateral panel 220b and the first lid external lateral panel 220c is intended to form the first lid lateral wall 220 in which the pair of overlapping and glued flaps defines the removable portion 24.

The first container internal lateral panel 215a has an extension equal to the extension of the first container external lateral panel 215b.

In particular, the extension of the first container internal lateral panel 215a and of the first container external lateral panel 215b is such that, once the pack 100 has been produced, access to a protruding portion 32 of the collar 27 is left free in order to glue the removable portion 24 to the protruding portion 32 of the collar, in this specific case, of the first collar lateral wall 29.

With reference to the embodiments that show the blanks 200, 300, 400 of figs. 12-14, the lines shown by way of example with a dashed line identify respective intended folding lines, while the lines shown by way of example with a solid line identify respective cutting lines.

It is clear that modifications and/or additions of parts may be made to the pack 10, 100 for smoking articles 500 and corresponding blank 200, 300, 400 as described heretofore, without departing from the field and scope of the present invention as defined by the claims.

In the following claims, the sole purpose of the references in brackets is to facilitate reading: they must not be considered as restrictive factors with regard to the field of protection claimed in the specific claims.

Claims

1. Rigid pack (10) for smoking articles (500) with a polygonal cross-section comprising:

- a container (11) having a container front wall (13) and an opposite container rear wall (14), a first container lateral wall (15) and a second container lateral wall (16) opposite and facing each other and a lower wall (17) disposed perpendicular to the first container lateral wall (15) and to the second container lateral wall (16), said container (11) defining an internal cavity (18) configured to house said smoking articles (500); - a closable lid (12) having a lid front wall (19), a first lid lateral wall (20) and a second lid lateral wall (21) opposite and facing each other, and an upper wall (22) disposed perpendicular to the first lid lateral wall (20) and the second lid lateral wall (21), said lid (12) being hinged to the container (11) in order to rotate between a closed position to prevent access inside the container (11) and an open position to allow access inside the container (11), wherein when the lid (12) is in said closed position:

- said upper wall (22) is located opposite said lower wall (17),

- said lid front wall (19) with said container front wall (13) lie on a common pack front plane (Pl), - said first lid lateral wall (20) with said first container lateral wall (15) lie on a common first pack lateral plane (P3),

- said second lid lateral wall (21) with said second container lateral wall (16) lie on a common second pack lateral plane (P4), wherein said lid (12) includes at least one removable portion (24) defined by a tear line (25) and extending from an edge of the lid (12), said at least one removable portion (24) being joined to the container (11) only by gluing and being an extension of said first lid lateral wall (20) and/or of said second lid lateral wall (21), and wherein said at least one removable portion (24) has a substantially triangular conformation and is perimetrically delimited by a first removable portion edge (24a) along the tear line (25), a second removable portion edge (24b) which meets an upper edge of the first container lateral wall (15) and a third removable portion edge (24c) substantially parallel to an edge formed between the first and/or second container lateral wall (15, 16) and the container rear wall (14) before the first opening of the pack, characterized in that said second and third removable portion edges (24b, 24c) meet forming a rounded comer, so as to create a gripping portion (24d) comprising said rounded comer, said gripping portion (24d) being easily raised with a finger to allow to detach said at least one removable portion (24) from the container (11) before said at least one removable portion (24) is tom from the lid (12) along said respective tear line (25) at the first opening of the pack (10).

2. Pack (10) as in claim 1, characterized in that said first container lateral wall (15) includes a first container internal lateral wall (15a) and a first container external lateral wall (15b) joined together and overlapping each other, and said second container lateral wall (16) includes a second container internal lateral wall (16a) and a second container external lateral wall (16b) joined together and overlapping each other, said at least one removable portion (24) being glued onto the first container internal lateral wall ( 15 a) and/or onto the second container internal lateral wall (16a).

3. Pack (10) as in claim 2, characterized in that said first lid lateral wall (20) and second lid lateral wall (21) with respectively said first container external lateral wall (15b) and second container external lateral wall (16b) lie respectively on the common first pack lateral plane (P3) and on the common second pack lateral plane (P4).

4. Pack (10) as in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that said first and/or second container internal lateral wall (15a, 16a) has a zone (15d, 16d) not occupied by the removable portion (24) in the proximity of said gripping portion (24d) of the removable portion (24) before the first opening of the pack (10).

5. Pack (10) as in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that said second removable portion edge (24b) meets a first upper edge (15c) of the first container external lateral wall and/or a second upper edge (16c) of the second container external lateral wall (16c) before the first opening of the pack (10).

6. Pack (10) as in any claim 2-5, characterized in that said upper edge of the first and/or second container external lateral wall (15c, 16c) comprises a first segment (15c’) having the same inclination of a first and/or second free lid lateral edge (20a, 21a), so as to define a lateral abutment for said lid (12) in the closed position, and a second segment (15c”), having a different inclination with respect - 19 - to the inclination of said first segment (15c’), substantially equal to that of said second removable portion edge (24b), before the first opening of the pack (10), that is, before said at least one removable portion (24) is torn from the lid (12), said first and second segments (15c’, 15c”) of the upper edge of the first and/or second container external lateral wall (15c, 16c) being inclined in a specular manner, one with respect to the other, starting from a common vertex (V) by an angle of inclination (oc) with respect to a vertical axis passing through said common vertex (V).

7. Pack (10) as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in that said first lid lateral wall (20) includes a first internal lateral wall (20b) and a first lid external lateral wall (20c) joined together and overlapping each other, and said second lid lateral wall (21) includes a second lid internal lateral wall (21b) and a second lid external lateral wall (21c) joined together and overlapping each other, said tear line (25) being defined on at least one of either said first lid external lateral wall (20c) or second lid external lateral wall (21c).

8. Pack (10) as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in that said first removable portion edge (24a), which before the removable portion (24) is torn from the lid (12) lies on the tear line (25), has a shorter length than that of a first free lid lateral edge (20a) and/or of a second free lid lateral edge (21a) from which said removable portion (24) extends.

9. Pack (10) as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in that the rounded comer formed between said second and third removable portion edges (24b, 24c) has a radius of curvature comprised between 1 and 4 mm.

10. Rigid pack (100) for smoking articles (500) with a polygonal cross-section comprising:

- a container (11) having a container front wall (13) and an opposite container rear wall (14), a first container lateral wall (15) and a second container lateral wall (16) opposite and facing each other, and a lower wall (17) disposed perpendicular to the first container lateral wall (15) and to the second container lateral wall (16), said container (11) defining an internal cavity (18) configured to house said smoking articles (500);

- a closable lid (12) having a lid front wall (19), a first lid lateral wall (20) and a second lid lateral wall (21) opposite and facing each other, and an upper wall (22) - 20 - disposed perpendicular to the first lid lateral wall (20) and the second lid lateral wall (21), said lid (12) being hinged to the container (11) in order to rotate between a closed position and an open position, wherein when the lid (12) is in said closed position:

- said upper wall (22) is located opposite said lower wall (17),

- said lid front wall (19) with said container front wall (13) lie on a common pack front plane (Pl),

- said first lid lateral wall (20) with said first container lateral wall (15) lie on a common first pack lateral plane (P3),

- said second lid lateral wall (21) with said second container lateral wall (16) lie on a common second pack lateral plane (P4),

- a collar (27) located inside said container (11) and having a collar front wall (28), a first collar lateral wall (29) and an opposite second collar lateral wall (30) respectively in contact with the container front wall (13), with the first container lateral wall (15) and with the second container lateral wall (16), wherein said collar (27) has at least one collar protruding portion (32) which protrudes from the container (11), wherein said lid (12) includes at least one removable portion (24) defined by a tear line (25) extending from an edge of the lid (12), said at least one removable portion (24) being joined to said at least one collar protruding portion (32) by gluing and being an extension a said first lid lateral wall (20) and/or of said second lid lateral wall (21), and wherein said at least one removable portion (24) has a substantially triangular conformation and is perimetrically delimited by a first removable portion edge (24a) along the tear line (25), a second removable portion edge (24b) which meets an upper edge of the first container lateral wall (15) and a third removable portion edge (24c) substantially parallel to an edge formed between the first container lateral wall (15) and the container rear wall (14) before the first opening of the pack, characterized in that said second and third removable portion edges (24b, 24c) meet forming a rounded corner, so as to create a gripping portion (24d) comprising said rounded comer, said gripping portion (24d) being easily raised with a finger to allow to detach said at least one removable portion (24) from the collar (32) before said at least one removable portion (24) is tom from the lid (12) along said respective tear line (25) at the first opening of the pack (100). - 21 -

11. Blank (200, 300; 400) to produce a rigid pack (10; 100) for smoking articles (500) with a polygonal cross-section formed by a single piece and comprising:

- a container front panel (213) intended to form a container front wall (13), and a container rear panel (214) intended to form a container rear wall (14) to be disposed opposite said container front wall (13), a lower panel (217) being interposed between said container front panel (213) and said container rear panel (214), intended to form a lower wall (17), a first container external lateral panel (215b) and a second container external lateral panel (216b) being present on the flanks of said container front panel (213) respectively, and a first container internal lateral panel (215a) and a second container internal lateral panel (216a) being present on the flanks of the container rear panel (214) respectively, wherein the overlapping and gluing respectively between the first container internal lateral panel (215a) and the first container external lateral panel (215b), and between the second container internal lateral panel (216a) and the second container external lateral panel (216b) are intended to form respectively a first container lateral wall (15) and a second container lateral wall (16) to be disposed opposite each other and perpendicular to the lower wall (17) so as to create a container (11) defining an internal cavity (18) configured to house smoking articles (500); - a lid front panel (219) intended to form a lid front wall (19), a first lid lateral panel (220) and a second lid lateral panel (221) are present on the flanks of the lid front panel (219) respectively, intended to form respectively a first lid lateral wall (20) and a second lid lateral wall (21) to be disposed opposite each other, and an upper panel (222) intended to form an upper wall (22) to be disposed perpendicular to the first lid lateral wall (20) and to the second lid lateral wall (21), said upper panel (222) being interposed between said container rear panel (214) and said lid front panel (219), a lid hinging line (26) lying on the container rear panel (214),

- at least one removable portion (24) defined by a tear line (25) and extending from an edge of at least one of either said first lid lateral panel (220) or said second lid lateral panel (221), said at least one removable portion (24) having a substantially triangular conformation perimetrically delimited by a first removable portion edge (24a) along the tear line (25), a second removable - 22 - portion edge (24b) intended to meet an inclined edge of said first container internal lateral panel (215 a) and/or of said second container internal lateral panel (216a) and a third removable portion edge (24c) intended to be disposed, before the first opening of the pack, substantially parallel to a folding line (L) that separates the container rear panel (214) from said first container internal lateral panel (215a) and/or from said second container internal lateral panel (216a), characterized in that said second and third removable portion edges (24b, 24c) meet forming a rounded corner, so as to create a gripping portion (24d) comprising said rounded corner.