FR2851760A1 - ELEMENT FOR SETTING VARIOUS ITEMS WITHIN PACKAGING - Google Patents

Abstract

This wedging element comprises a sheet (1) of a flexible deformable material, able to bear on the upper end of the articles by following their shape, this sheet (1) being secured along at least two parallel edges of two elements of stiffening in a semi-rigid material such as cardboard or corrugated cardboard, from which protrude laterally separate tabs (3), able to be straightened to come to rest against the internal face of two parallel walls (7) of the packaging and to be optionally made integral therewith, in order to lock in position the sheet (1) of flexible material and the articles on which it rests.

Description

Various items wedging element inside a

conditioning.

  The present invention relates to a wedging element for various articles inside a package. The invention also relates to a packaging containing such articles and equipped with a wedging element thereof inside the packaging.

  It has been known for a long time that it is difficult to maintain in position inside a package or a package objects of various shapes and sizes, which fill only part of this package or package. and that it is desirable to immobilize during transport or handling operations.

  A solution which has been widely used for many years has consisted in making one or more films of a heat-shrinkable material integral with various parts of the packaging, the objects of which are covered, once they have been placed in position, and the then brought by heating with radiant panels to a temperature sufficient to cause them to shrink, so as to firmly enclose the conditioned objects.

  Such a process has been very successful and the Applicant, in particular, has proposed, under the trade name GROUPAC, many types of packaging, devices and methods for implementing this technique.

  Films of thermoplastic material are unfortunately not biodegradable and environmental protection has led, over the past 25 years, to increasingly avoid their use.

  Other techniques were therefore then envisaged and this is how FR-A2815 014 describes a method and a device for wedging objects in a box with a square or rectangular section, according to which a sheet of paper is introduced into this box. a foldable material, for example made of cardboard, this sheet comprising a central part whose dimensions are substantially equivalent to those of the bottom of the box, so that it can be moved towards the bottom thereof, and, on at least two opposite sides of this central part, at least one foldable flap, said foldable flaps being folded up. The wedging sheet thus shaped and prepared can then be inserted into the box, until it comes into contact with the upper surface of the objects housed in this box, while its flaps are pushed back, applied and fixed against the internal face of the side walls of the box, so as to achieve a solid fixing of the wedging sheet on these walls and to ensure the wedging of the objects housed therein.

  The present invention is concerned with wedging elements of this general type, but comprising, instead of a sheet of pliable material such as cardboard, a sheet of a flexible deformable material, for example of woven or nonwoven material. , made of paper, plastic wrap, mesh or net, or the like, capable of closely matching the shape of the upper part of the packaged articles.

  The invention also aims to provide such a wedging element in which the sheet of flexible material is secured along at least two parallel edges of stiffening elements, for example of a semi-rigid material, comprising lateral legs articulated on 15 these elements and capable of being made integral with the internal faces of two parallel walls of the packaging to be equipped, in order to lock in position the sheet of flexible material and the objects on which it is supported.

  The subject of the invention is therefore a wedging element 20 for various articles inside a package, characterized in that it comprises a sheet of flexible deformable material, capable of bearing on the end upper of these articles by matching their shape, this sheet being secured along at least two parallel edges of two stiffening elements in a semi-rigid material 25 such as cardboard or corrugated cardboard, from which laterally project separate legs, able to be straightened to come to bear against the internal face of two parallel walls of the packaging and to be optionally made integral therewith, in order to lock in position the sheet of flexible material and the articles on which it is supported.

  The stiffening elements can be constituted simply by strips of cardboard or corrugated cardboard and the legs which are contiguous to them can be optionally glued against the internal face of the associated walls of the packaging.

  Advantageously, from the ends of the fold lines by which the legs are articulated on the associated stiffening element extend transversely to this element of the fold lines perpendicular to the previous ones, so as to be able to easily deform the stiffening elements so that the sheet of deformable material freely follows the shape of the upper part of the packaged articles. Deformable angles are thus produced, which can be made integral with the internal faces of the contiguous walls in the position most conducive to wedging in position of the packaged articles.

  Another object of the invention is the packaging in which these articles are housed and equipped with a wedging element according to the invention, possibly integral with the internal face of two of its side walls.

  It will be noted that the packaging can be made of any rigid or semi-rigid material, and that the panel formed by the flexible sheet of a deformable material and the stiffening elements can have a shape substantially similar to that of the bottom of the packaging that it is intended to equip and a surface slightly larger than that of this bottom.

  Legs (or flaps) may optionally be articulated at the ends of the stiffening elements in such a way that they can be straightened so as to come to bear against the internal face of the walls of the packaging perpendicular to those against which the other legs are applied. of this element and possibly be made integral.

  As a variant, the corresponding ends of each stiffening element 25 can be joined by bands of the same semi-rigid material articulated on these elements by fold lines perpendicular to those by which the legs are articulated on them, these bands coming to be applied against the internal faces of the walls of the packaging perpendicular to those with which the stiffening elements are associated, so as to be optionally made integral therewith.

  Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will emerge from the detailed description which follows of various forms of implementation thereof. In this description, reference will be made to the appended schematic drawings, in which: FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 are three plan views of wedging elements according to the invention, seen from the side facing the interior of the packaging that 'they are intended to equip; Figures 4 and 5 are perspective views illustrating the use of such wedging elements to hold various items inside the packaging.

  In all the figures, identical or having similar functions are designated by the same reference numbers.

  The wedging element shown in FIG. 1 comprises a rectangular sheet 1 of a flexible deformable material, for example of a nonwoven material, the longitudinal edges of which are fixed, for example by gluing, on two stiffening strips 2 in one semi-rigid material such as cardboard or corrugated cardboard.

  From the longitudinal edge of each strip 2 furthest from the other strip 2 protrude outwards from the separate tabs 3, articulated on the strip 2 associated by fold lines arranged in extension of each other.

  Each tab 3 is separated from the tab or tabs 3 contiguous by a V-shaped cutout 4, the point of which is turned towards the associated strip 2 and situated between the fold lines by which two contiguous tabs 3 are articulated on the strip 2 .

  From the tip of each V-shaped cut extends, transverse to the contiguous strip 2, a fold line perpendicular to the lines by which the legs 3 are articulated on this strip, so as to allow each strip 2 to deform freely.

  The panel consisting of the sheet 1 of a flexible material and the strips 2 of a semi-rigid material has a shape substantially similar to that of the bottom of the packaging 6 that the wedging element is intended to equip (see FIG. 4) and a surface slightly greater than that of this bottom, in order to be able to style the conditioned articles.

  The flexible sheet 1 of the wedging element is in fact intended to bear by conforming to their shape on objects of various shapes and sizes resting on the bottom of the packaging, so as to enclose them tightly, while the tabs 3 in a semi-rigid material are straightened laterally to come into contact and lock against the internal face of the longitudinal walls 7 of the package 6, in order to wedge the objects in position in the package. If it is desired to lock the wedging element and the objects enclosed by the sheet 1 in position, it is advantageous to glue the tabs 3 against the internal face of the walls 7.

  It can be seen, as explained above, that the bands 2 of 5 of each wedging element and the adjoining legs 3 form deformable angles, which greatly favor the positioning of the wedging element and the conformation of the sheet 1 in the shape of the upper part of the packaged objects.

  The wedging element shown in Figure 2 is similar in principle to that of Figure 1, but the legs 3a hinged at each end of the strips 2 are adjoining, by a fold line perpendicular to that by which these tabs 3a are perpendicular to the strip 2 associated with a flap 8, intended to be folded perpendicularly to the corresponding tab 3a, to come to bear against the internal face of a wall of the packaging perpendicular to those against which the legs 3.

  Each flap 8 is here adjoined by a fold line to a flap 9 intended to be folded in the plane of the corresponding strip 2.

  The sheet 1 of the deformable material has been shown in FIG. 2 as extending between the flaps 8, but it could also not be present between these flaps.

  In the embodiment of the wedging element of FIG. 3, a strip 10 is provided at each lateral end of the sheet 1 of flexible deformable material, perpendicular to the strips 2, at the ends of which it is articulated by a parallel fold line to that which extend transversely to the strips 2, from the point of the cutouts 4.

  As can be seen in FIG. 5, in the position of use of the wedging element, the strips 10 are applied against the internal face 30 of the transverse walls 11, perpendicular to the walls 7 against which the tabs 3 apply. These strips 10 can optionally be made integral with the walls 11, for example by gluing.

  The invention therefore provides a particularly simple and easy-to-use means for wedging objects of various shapes inside a package, the element 1 made of a deformable material being able to adapt precisely to the shape of the upper part of the objects on which it rests, due to the ability to deform presented by the lateral stiffening elements of which this element 1 is integral.

  Naturally, the invention is not limited to the forms of implementation which have been described, and the legs 3, the flaps 8 or the strips 9 could, of course, have a different shape. Similarly, instead of providing V-shaped cutouts 4 between the legs 3, these cutouts could have the shape of a U.

Claims (10)

  1. Wedging element for various articles inside a package (6), characterized in that it comprises a sheet (1) of a flexible deformable material, capable of bearing on the upper end 5 of these articles by matching their shape, this sheet (1) being integral along at least two parallel edges of two stiffening elements (2) made of a semi-rigid material such as cardboard or corrugated cardboard, from which protrude laterally separate tabs (3), able to be straightened to come to bear against the internal face of two parallel walls (7) of the packaging and to be optionally made integral therewith, to lock in position the sheet (1) of flexible material and the articles on which it is based.   2. wedging element according to claim 1, characterized in that the stiffening elements consist of strips (2) of cardboard or corrugated cardboard on which the tabs (3) are articulated by fold lines aligned with one another .   3 wedging element according to claim 2, characterized in that, from the ends of the fold lines by which the legs (3) are articulated on the bands (2) extend on these bands of the fold lines perpendicular to the previous and intended to promote the deformation of these bands (2) in the position of use of the wedging element.   4. Wedging element according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the legs (3) are separated from the contiguous legs by a cutout (4) in the form of a V or U. 5. wedging element according to one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the panel constituted by the flexible sheet (1) of a deformable material and the strips (2) which are integral therewith has a shape substantially similar to that of the bottom of the packaging (6) which it is intended to equip and a surface slightly greater than that of this bottom.   6. Wedging element according to one of claims i to 5, characterized in that legs or flaps (8) are articulated on legs (3a) disposed at the ends of the stiffening elements (2), so they can be straightened perpendicular to the tab (3a) to come to be applied against the internal face of walls (1 1) of the package (6) to be fitted with this wedging element, perpendicular to those against which come to be applied the other tabs (3) adjoining these stiffening elements (2), the flexible sheet (1) of deformable material extending or not between these flaps (8).   7. wedging element according to claim 6, characterized in that flaps (8) are articulated by a fold line on a tab (9) perpendicular deposited in the same plane as the stiffening element (2) corresponding.   8. wedging element according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the corresponding ends of the stiffening elements (2) are joined by strips (10) of the same semi-rigid material, articulated on these elements ( 2) by fold lines perpendicular to those by which the tabs (3) are articulated on these elements, these bands (10) being intended to come to bear against the internal faces of walls of the packaging perpendicular to those with which they are associated the legs (3) of the stiffening elements (2), to be optionally made integral therewith.   9 Packaging in which various articles are housed and equipped with a wedging element according to one of claims 1 to 8, the flexible sheet (1) of which rests on its shape on the upper part of the conditioned articles, while that the lugs (3) of the stiffening elements (2) are straightened and come to bear on the internal face of two parallel walls (7) of the packaging.   10. Packaging according to claim 9, characterized in that the tabs (3) are integral, in particular by gluing, of the walls (7) of the packaging against which they bear.