GB1563383A - Blank and open top box or tray made from said blank - Google Patents

Description

(54) IMPROVED BLANK AND OPEN TOP BOX OR TRAY MADE FROM SAID BLANK (71) We, MACMILLAN BLOEDEL CONTAINERS LIMITED. a British Company, of 24/30 King Street, Watford.

Hertfordshire, WDI 8BP, England, do hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement:- This invention relates to a blank made of a stiff material capable of being scored and creased along a line and bent about said line to form upon erection an open top box or tray. The stiff creasable and foldable material for the blank may conveniently be solid fibre board, corrugated cardboard or the like.

It is acknowledged by those skilled in the art that it is desirable but difficult to produce from a unitary blank an open-top box or tray with a base integral with the sides, and with integral opposed flanges or straps partly covering the open top, said box or tray being strong enough to withstand the stacking of filled boxes or trays, yet capable of being collapsed for despatch in a substantially flat form.

The above desideratum is satisfied according to the present invention by the provision of a unitary blank of rigid creasable and foldable material that is scored and cut so as to be adapted to be erected into an open top box or tray with flanges or straps inwardly directed of the box or tray along respective top edge score lines of one opposed pair of sides of the open top when the box or tray has been erected and which blank contains in addition a second pair of opposed sides the said two pairs of opposed sides being placed about the four sides of a rectangular base defined by two opposed pairs of intersecting orthogonal score lines defining four basal points that in the erected box or tray form four basal corners, one pair of said score lines intersecting the top edge score lines in four top edge points and extending into and across the flanges or straps and the other pair of score lines extending into and across the second pair of opposed sides, a first short score line extending from each top edge point outwardly of the blank at 45 degrees of arc to the orthogonal lines of the blank and across the adjacent said flange or strap and a second short score line extending outwardly of the blank parallel to its juxtaposed first short score line and across the adjacent one of said second pair of sides from each of the said four basal points so that the erected box may be collapsed to a substantially flat form.

According to another feature of the present invention we provide an open top box or tray when formed from said blank as set forth above.

The present invention will be more fully understood from the following description given by way of example only in relation to Figures 1, 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawing in which: Figure 1 is a plan view of a cardboard blank in which a cut (C) is shown by double lines a crease or a score line (Sc) by a dashed line and geometrical points of important intersections by a heavy dot denoted by an arabic numeral.

Figure 2 is a view in parallel perspective to a smaller scale than that used in Figure 1 of an open top box or tray erected from the blank of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a view in parallel perspective of the box in Figure 2 collapsed into a substantially flat form for ease of dispatch.

Referring now to Figure I a unitary blank of cardboard is seen to comprise a rectangular base B defined by four orthogonal score lines of two opposed pairs Scl . Sc2 Sc3. Sc4 intersecting at basal points 10, 11, 12, 13, that in the erected box or tray form basal corners. About the base are two pairs of opposed sides S1 . S,: S3 S4.

Sides S, . S2 respectively have top edge score lines Scs. Sc6 which intersect with score lines Sc3. Sc4 to give top edge points 14. 15. 16. 17. The top edge score lines Sc5. Sc6 respectively carry flanges or straps ST1. ST2 that in the erected box when filled are tensionable. From basal points 10, 11.

12. 13 there extend outwardly of the blank diagonal score lines ScD1; ScD2; ScD3; ScD4 one pair of which extend across side S4 and the other pair of which extends across side S4. From top edge points 14, 15, 16, 17 there extend inwardly of the blank diagonal score lines Scd5 . ScD6; ScD7 . ScD8 one pair of which extend across strap ST1 and the other pair of which extend across strap ST2.

The blank has eight cuts C1. C3. C3. C4. Q . C6 . C7 C8 The flanges or straps ST,.ST, each have flaps shown at F1. F3. F3 . F4; and extension score lines Sc3E1 . Sc3E2 . Sc4E1 . Sc4E2 .

that are respectively extensions of Sc3. Sc4.

The sides S3. S4 each have flaps F31 . F32; F4, . F42 and extension score lines Sc1E1 . Sc1E2 . Sc2E1 . Sc2E2 that are respectively extensions of Sc1 and Sc2.

In Figure 2 an open top box or tray is erected from the blank of Figure 1 and the flaps Fl . F2. F3 . F4 are jointed to their respective side walls S3.S4, only two are shown viz: Fl . F2. When the box or tray is filled flanges or straps ST1.ST2 are tensionable, and the box or tray is able to be stacked without buckling.

In Figure 3 the erected box or tray of Figure 2 is collapsed to a flat form for ease of dispatch, the box or tray readily being openable to the fully erected condition of Figure 2 with but a single opening action indicated by arrows 3A 3a WHAT WE CLAIM IS: 1. A unitary blank of rigid creasable and foldable material that is scored and cut so as to be adapted to be erected into an open top box or tray with flanges or straps inwardly directed of the box or tray along respective top edge score lines of one opposed pair of sides of the open top when the box or tray has been erected and which blank contains in addition a second pair of opposed sides the said two pairs of opposed sides being placed about the four sides of a rectangular base defined by two opposed pairs of intersecting orthogonal score lines defining four basal points that in the erected box or tray form four basal corners, one pair of said scores lines intersecting the top edge score lines in four top edge points and extending into and across the flanges or straps and the other pair of score lines extending into and across the second pair of opposed sides, a first short score line extending from each top edge point outwardly of the blank at 45 degrees of arc to the orthogonal lines of the blank and across the adjacent said flange or strap and a second short score line extending outwardly of the blank parallel to its juxtaposed first short score line and across the adjacent one of said second pair of sides from each of the said four basal points so that the erected box may be collapsed to a substantially flat form.

2. The unitary blank according to Claim I, wherein each side of the second pair of opposed sides has flaps that turn inwardly of the box or tray when erected.

3. The unitary blank according to Claim 1 substantially as herein described and shown in Figure 1 of the accompanying drawing.

4. An open top box or tray whenever formed from a blank as claimed in any one of the preceding claims.

5. An open top box or tray as claimed in Claim 4 substantially as herein described and as shown in Figures 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawing.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (5)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. 12. 13 there extend outwardly of the blank diagonal score lines ScD1; ScD2; ScD3; ScD4 one pair of which extend across side S4 and the other pair of which extends across side S4. From top edge points 14, 15, 16, 17 there extend inwardly of the blank diagonal score lines Scd5 . ScD6; ScD7 . ScD8 one pair of which extend across strap ST1 and the other pair of which extend across strap ST2. The blank has eight cuts C1. C3. C3. C4. Q . C6 . C7 C8 The flanges or straps ST,.ST, each have flaps shown at F1. F3. F3 . F4; and extension score lines Sc3E1 . Sc3E2 . Sc4E1 . Sc4E2 . that are respectively extensions of Sc3. Sc4. The sides S3. S4 each have flaps F31 . F32; F4, . F42 and extension score lines Sc1E1 . Sc1E2 . Sc2E1 . Sc2E2 that are respectively extensions of Sc1 and Sc2. In Figure 2 an open top box or tray is erected from the blank of Figure 1 and the flaps Fl . F2. F3 . F4 are jointed to their respective side walls S3.S4, only two are shown viz: Fl . F2. When the box or tray is filled flanges or straps ST1.ST2 are tensionable, and the box or tray is able to be stacked without buckling. In Figure 3 the erected box or tray of Figure 2 is collapsed to a flat form for ease of dispatch, the box or tray readily being openable to the fully erected condition of Figure 2 with but a single opening action indicated by arrows 3A 3a WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. A unitary blank of rigid creasable and foldable material that is scored and cut so as to be adapted to be erected into an open top box or tray with flanges or straps inwardly directed of the box or tray along respective top edge score lines of one opposed pair of sides of the open top when the box or tray has been erected and which blank contains in addition a second pair of opposed sides the said two pairs of opposed sides being placed about the four sides of a rectangular base defined by two opposed pairs of intersecting orthogonal score lines defining four basal points that in the erected box or tray form four basal corners, one pair of said scores lines intersecting the top edge score lines in four top edge points and extending into and across the flanges or straps and the other pair of score lines extending into and across the second pair of opposed sides, a first short score line extending from each top edge point outwardly of the blank at 45 degrees of arc to the orthogonal lines of the blank and across the adjacent said flange or strap and a second short score line extending outwardly of the blank parallel to its juxtaposed first short score line and across the adjacent one of said second pair of sides from each of the said four basal points so that the erected box may be collapsed to a substantially flat form.

2. The unitary blank according to Claim I, wherein each side of the second pair of opposed sides has flaps that turn inwardly of the box or tray when erected.

3. The unitary blank according to Claim 1 substantially as herein described and shown in Figure 1 of the accompanying drawing.

4. An open top box or tray whenever formed from a blank as claimed in any one of the preceding claims.

5. An open top box or tray as claimed in Claim 4 substantially as herein described and as shown in Figures 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawing.