FR2527177A1 - Stiff boxes with cut away side panels - to allow contents to be stored, displayed, priced and inspected without removal - Google Patents

Abstract

Free standing packs for transport and display of several similar items are made from rigid sheet card or plastic matl. in complementary shapes to provide boxes which can be superimposed on a common plinth and enclosed by a common cover and one or more end panels, where the sides of each box are sufficiently open or cut away at several levels to display each item and allow it to be individually priced. The packs are for convenience of sale, esp. by self-service information for point-of-sale use. For initial transport, storage and/or display, a loaded pack may be enclosed by thermoretractable transparent film. Individual items may be removed from the pack without causing collapse. One of the end pieces of the pack may be removeably to release the contents.

Description

 The present invention relates to a new receptacle which can be used both for the transport of packaged unit products, to points of sale, and as a display unit at said points of sale.

 I1 is known to send packaged unit products, up to the point of sale, in suitable packaging such as cardboard boxes for example, the products then being unpacked at the point of sale to undergo composting indicative of their price. sale and set up on displays usually made up of metal support structures, on shelves or in bins, from which they are extracted by the seller - or by customers, at self-service sales outlets - .However, from their packaging in the factory until they are made available to customers, the products require a large number of manipulations, including the palletization of packaging boxes. unpacking. composting and placing unitary products on display racks, shelving or the like, and, consequently, the intervention of labor which increases the operating costs of the manufacturer on the one hand and of the retail merchant, on the other hand, and thereby considerably reduces the profit margins.

 This is why it has been proposed to transport packaged unit products from the factory where they are manufactured and packaged, to the points of sale, in cardboard boxes with open front face, fixed immovably on pallets, wrapped for transport, a shrinkable plastic film which is removed on arrival at the point of sale to allow the use of said boxes as displays for the products contained therein, which are made directly accessible to customers due to the front opening of the boxes. Such boxes mounted on pallets considerably simplify the transport operations and do away with the operations of placing them on shelves, displays, bins or the like existing at points of sale; however, they do not solve the problem posed by the composting of the packaged unit products. Indeed, the unit packages are arranged in bunk beds in the boxes and if the composting of the packages accessible by the front opening or by the upper opening of the box does not pose a problem, it is not the same for the other packaging contained in the box; it is therefore necessary to take the unitary products out of the box to compost them, then put them back in place in the latter, which then plays its role of display vis-à-vis the customers, who can extract a product unitary without having to resort to a seller, as is the case, in particular, at self-service sales outlets. It follows that the arrangement of such packaging boxes mounted on pallets still requires the intervention of costly labor for the merchant, for unpacking, composting and the replacement of unit products in the display.

 The present invention has therefore set itself the aim of providing receptacles which can be used both for the transport of packaged unit products and as displays at points of sale, which better meet the needs of the practice than receptacles intended for the same purpose proposed in the prior art, in particular in that they allow to unpack the operations of unpacking and replacing the unit products in the display, particularly labor-intensive, required by the solutions proposed in the prior art, in that they provide packaging which provides better protection of the unit products, during transport and in that they provide advertising and / or informative supports directly associated with the unit products presented.

 The subject of the present invention is a receptacle which can be used both for transporting and as a display for packaged unit products arranged in bunk beds in said receptacle, comprising a box with front opening, of suitable material, fixedly mounted on a pallet. , which receptacle is characterized in that said box is provided, on its side walls, with openings allowing access, for composting, to each of the packages of each of the bunk beds of said box.

 The term "unit products or" unit packaging "within the meaning of the present invention, products or packaging forming a sales unit, whether it is a single element, or a grouping of several elements by all appropriate means such as cardboard or plastic packaging, plastic film, strapping, etc., so as to constitute a sales unit.

 According to an advantageous embodiment of the receptacle according to the invention, it is also provided with a removable pediment which serves, during transport, as a means of closing re the front opening of the box and of advertising medium and / or informative after being moved from the front opening to overcome the receptacle, when the latter is in place as a display at the point of sale.

 According to another advantageous embodiment of the receptacle according to the invention, it is also provided, during transport, with a removable cap which closes its upper end and contributes with the aforementioned pediment, to ensure better protection during transport, unit products contained in the receptacle.

 According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the receptacle according to the invention, the assembly constituted by the body mounted in a non-removable manner on a pallet and containing unit products, the pediment in the closed position of the front opening of the body and the closure cap at the top of the body, is wrapped, for transport, with a suitable plastic film, in particular of the retractable type, detachable when said receptacle arrives at the point of sale.

 In accordance with a preferred arrangement of the invention.

the openings in the side walls of the box are provided substantially at the level of each bed of unit products, over a length and a height sufficient to allow the composting of each of said unit products in place in said box.

 In accordance with another preferred arrangement of the invention, the pediment is capable of lateral flanges which facilitate its securing on the lateral walls of the box, during transport.

 According to an advantageous modality of this arrangement, the outer edge of each of the lateral edges of the pediment is not parallel to the folding liana according to the laauelle chaaue lateral edge is articulated to the front face of the pediment, to allow a more extent of advertising or other information carried by the front face of the pediment, even for an observer placed laterally with respect to said pediment when the latter surmounts the display at the point of sale.

 In accordance with another preferred arrangement of the invention, the pediment comprises means for its positioning on the body, substantially in the extension of the rear face of said body, when the latter plays its role of display at the point of sale. .

 According to an advantageous modality of this arrangement, said means for placing the pediment on the body are constituted by slots made at the lower end of the lines of articulation of the lateral edges of the pediment with respect to the front face of the pediment.

 According to another advantageous embodiment of this arrangement, said means for placing the pediment on the body, are constituted by the aforesaid slots in cooperation with slots made in the horizontal edges associated with the side walls - or at the rear face - of the body, intended to receive the lower ends of the side edges of the pediment.

 According to the invention, a plurality of grouped receptacles is surmounted, for transport, by a single cap for closing said receptacles.

 Also in accordance with the invention, a plurality of grouped receptacles is wrapped, simultaneously, for transport, with a suitable plastic film, in particular of the retractable type.

Also according to the invention, each pro bed
single units is carried by an intermediate plate in ma
suitable material.

According to a preferred embodiment of these inter slaps
clear, each intermediate plate is made up of two
independent juxtaposed intermediate half-plates.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention. the
openings in the side walls of the body
feel at least at their end near the joint line of said side walls with the rear face of the
body, shaped like an arrow to improve the rigidity of
say side walls.

In addition to the foregoing arrangements, the invention includes
still other provisions, which will emerge from the description
tion which will follow.

The invention will be better understood using the complement of
descrittion aui will follow. cui refers to the accompanying drawings
in lesauels:
Figure 1 is a Derssective view of the receptacle con
form with the invention, closed. around the transport
fiaure 2 is a perspective view of a mode of realization
sation of the receptacle according to the invention, open, surmounted
the pediment, to play its role of display
Figure 3 is a perspective view, similar to the fi
gure 2, of another embodiment of the conforming receptacle
to the invention, and
Figure 4 is a perspective view of an inter plate
calaire in two parts, according to the invention.

It is understood, however, that these drawings and the corresponding descriptive third parties, are given only to
title of illustration of the object of the invention, of which they do
in no way constitute a limitation.

 The receptacle in accordance with the invention consists of a box 1 made of all suitable materials such as cardboard, compact or expanded plastic, etc., mounted irremovably on a pallet 2 itself made in all suitable material such as wood, plastic, agglomerated, ferrous or non-ferrous metal, etc. The box 1 shown in FIG. 1 is closed, on its front face, by a pediment 3 and at its top by a cap 4 .

 The front face of the body 1 is open substantially over its entire height and width, while, in the embodiment shown, its rear face 5 is full; it will however be readily understood that the compactness of the rear face 5 is not critical and that said rear face may include openings. According to the invention, the side walls 6 each have openings 7 formed on each of said walls, preferably facing one another, although such an arrangement is not critical: it will be understood, in fact easily oue the openings 7 Dratiauelles in each of the side walls 6 may not gas in reaard of one another. In the embodiment shown, the openings 7 are horizontal and are formed substantially over almost the entire width of the wall, at each bed of products, to allow easy access to the packaging for the compostaqe thereof without having to take them out of the box 1. It will however be readily understood that the fact of making the openings 7 horizontal n 'is not critical in itself and that they could be arranged ver ticalementjparallelement to the longitudinal axis of the box, provided that their arrangement allows easy access to packaging for composting.

 The pediment 3 is used, during transport, to close the open front face of the body 1 and as an informative, advertising or other support, surmounting the body 1, advantageously in the extension of the rear face 5 of the latter, when the receptacle formed by the box 1 carried by the pallet 2, plays the role of display at the point of sale.

 The pediment 3 advantageously comprises lateral flanges 8 articulated by a vertical fold line 9 on the face 10 of the pediment. When the pediment 3 is in the closed position of the body 1, these lateral flanges 8 are applied to the corresponding zone of the side walls 6 of the body 1, to ensure satisfactory closure; to avoid any accidental displacement of the pediment 3 during transport, it may be advantageous to temporarily fix the lateral edges, by means of an adhesive tape for example, to the corresponding side wall 6 of the body 1.

 In addition, for transport, it may be advantageous to group together several receptacles each consisting of a box 1 mounted on a pallet 2 and the front face of which is closed by a pediment 3, so that they are closed at their top by a single hat of the hat type 4, which covers them simultaneously. It can also be advantageous to provide a grouping of several receptacles. movens capable of preventing a displacement of one of the receptacles relative to the others during transport. such as straps or, preferably, plastic film, for example of the shrink type.

 During the receptacle according to the invention, is put in place at the point of sale and stripped of its cap 4, the pediment 3 is removed from the front face of the body 1 and is mounted on said body, in the extension of the rear face 5 of the latter. This assembly is carried out by means of the slots 11 formed at the lower end of the fold line 9 of the pediment 3; these slots 11 to which a suitable length is given to give a good, well-balanced seat to the pediment 3 on the body 1, cover the upper end of the articulation line 12 of the side walls 6 relative to the rear face 5 of the body 1. The inner part of the face 10 advantageously carries inscriptions and / or figurative representations of an informative and / or advertising nature, relating, in particular, to the content of the display to allow easy viewing and / or reading of the information. mations carried on the pediment 3, even for an observer who is not in the axis of the display, the side edges 8 of the pediment are made so as to facilitate this vision, and are, for example, of a width which goes decreasing from the base to the top to the pediment 3 (see FIG. 2), so that the outer edge 17 of said lateral edges 8 is not parallel to their inner edge 9.

 In an alternative embodiment in which the body 1 is provided with horizontal reinforcing edges 13 and 14 at its top (cf. FIG. 3), slots 15 are provided in the horizontal edges 14 courtyard Allow the lower ends of the lateral edges to pass 8 of the pediment 3. These slots 15 also contribute to ensuring an effective and safe securing of the pediment 3 to the receptacle formed by the body 1 and the pallet 2.

 The assembly formed by the box 1 mounted on the pallet 2 and surmounted by the pediment 3. constitutes the display at the point of sale, in accordance with the invention.

 Box 1 contains unit products which have been set up there at the factory, in superimposed horizontal beds, the lower bed of products resting on the bottom of box 1, while successive superimposed beds rest on an intermediate plate. . The intermediate plates can be produced either in the usual form of plates whose dimensions correspond substantially to the interior depth and width of the body, or, in accordance with the invention, in the form of two independent juxtaposed plates 16a, 16b of which the width corresponds substantially to the interior width of the body 1, while the length of each of them corresponds substantially to half the depth of the body 1; such an arrangement has the advantage of facilitating the handling of employees of the sales area in fact, when the unitary products forming a bed have been removed entirely by the customers, leaving the intermediate plate uncovered, it is up to the employees of the area remove it from the display to allow customers to easily access the bed just below. When this plate corresponds substantially to the internal dimensions of the body, it is heavy and, moreover, it requires, owing to its virtual absence of play with respect to the walls of the body, numerous manipulations in various positions to allow its extraction of the body 1.We will therefore easily understand that by making the interlayer in the form of two half-plates 16a, 16b, as has just been indicated, each of the half-plates is lighter and easier to extract , and they are removed successively when the corresponding part of the bed has been removed by the customers.

The displays in accordance with the invention, in addition to saving costly labor, also save the efforts of the labor assigned to their surveillance, not only by the arrangement of the dividers in the form of half-plates 16a, 16b, but also by the fact that they avoid him the lonque, tedious and painful maneuvers of the unpacking of the unit products with a view to the compostaqe and the re-installation of these latter after their omsostaqe: indeed, the provision openings 7 on each of the side walls of the box 1 is such that it allows the composting of the unit products contained in the display without having to take them out of it. The openings
preferably arranged opposite each of the bunk beds and over a length and in a configuration such that access to all of the packages of unit products of each of the rows whose juxtaposition forms a bed, is also easy for the operator in charge composting is what is allowed in particular by the configuration of the arrows 7 in the form of arrows shown by way of non-limiting example in the drawings.

 One thus obtains, in accordance with the invention, a display at the point of sale which combines the approval of easy access for customers to a simplification of handling for employees of point of sale. In addition, the receptacle according to the invention combines with its quality of particularly advantageous display, that of a particularly handy transport packaging. aui automates the loading of each box and automates the loading and unloading operations of the boxes on the truck, wagon, etc ..., transport.

 As is apparent from the above, the invention is in no way limited to those of its embodiments and of application which have just been described more explicitly; on the contrary, it embraces all the variants which may come to the mind of the technician in the matter, without departing from the framework, or the scope, of the present invention.

Claims (15)

 1. Receptacle usable both for transport and as a display of packaged unit products arranged in bunk beds in said receptacle, comprising a front opening box, of suitable material, fixedly installed on a pallet, which receptacle is characterized in that said box (1) is provided, on its side walls (6), with openings (7) allowing access, for composting, to each of the packages of each of the bunk beds of said box (1).  2. Receptacle according to claim 1, characterized in that the receptacle is further provided with a removable pediment (3) which serves, during transport, as means for closing the front opening of the case and for advertising medium and / or informative after being moved from the front opening to overcome the receptacle, when the latter is in place as a display at the point of sale.  3. Receptacle according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the receptacle is further provided, during transport, with a removable cap (4) which closes its upper end and contributes with the pediment (3; aforesaid. To ensure better protection During transport, the unitary products contained in the receptacle.  4. Receptacle according to claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the assembly constituted by the body (1) mounted in a non-removable manner on a pallet (2) and containing unitary products, the pediment (3; in the closed position of the front opening of the box (1) and the cap (4) for closing the top of the box (1), is wrapped, for transport, with a film of suitable plastic, in particular of the retractable, detachable type when said receptacle arrives at the point of sale.  5. Receptacle according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the openings (7) formed in the lateral walls (6) of the box, are provided substantially at the level of each bed of unit products, over a length and a height sufficient to allow composting of each of said unit products in place in said box (1).  6. Receptacle according to one auelconaue of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the pediment (3) is provided with side flanges (8) which facilitate its securing on the side walls (6) of the body (1), during transport.  7. Receptacle according to claim 6, characterized in that the outer edge (17) of each of the side edges (8) of the pediment (3) is not parallel to the fold line (9) along which each side edge (8) is articulated on the front face (10) of the pediment (3), to allow a wider view of advertising or other information carried by the front face (10) of the pediment (3), even for an observer placed laterally by report to said pediment (3) when it overcomes the display at the point of sale.  8. Receptacle according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the pediment (3; includes means for its installation on the body (1), substantially in the extension of the rear face (5) of said case (1), when the latter plays its role of display at the point of sale.  9. Receptacle according to claim 8, characterized in that said means for placing the pediment (33 on the body (1), are constituted by slots (11) formed at the lower end of the lines-'axti ation ( Side edges (8) of the pediment (3) relative to the front face (10) of the pediment (3).  10. Receptacle according to claims 8 and 9, characterized in that said means for placing the pediment (3) on the body (1), are constituted by the slots (11) above mentioned in cooperation with slots (15) formed in the ho rizontaus edges (14) associated with the side walls (6) or with the rear face (5) of the body (1), intended to receive the lower ends of the side edges (8i of the pediment (3).  11. Receptacles according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that a plurality of grouped receptacles is surmounted, for transport, by a single cap for closing said receptacles.  12. Receptacles according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that a plurality of grouped receptacles is simultaneously wrapped, for transport, with a suitable plastic film, in particular of the retractable type.  13. Receptacle according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that each bed of unit products contained in said receptacle is carried by an intermediate plate of suitable material.  14. Receptacle according to claim 13, characterized in that each intermediate plate is constituted by two intermediate intermediate plates (16a, 16b) juxtaposed independent.  15 Receptacle according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that the openings (7) formed on the side walls (6) of the body (1) have at least at their end close to the line of articulation ( 12) of said side walls (6) with the rear face (5) of the body (1), the shape of an arrow to improve the rigidity of said side walls (6).