GB2078202A - Article-locating inserts - Google Patents

Abstract

A carton has a body (40), and an insert (10) which has a support panel (12) overlying a base panel of the body and partition flaps (26) upstanding from the support panel to define a plurality of sections for receiving articles (34), side flaps (14), attached along opposed edges of the support panel (12), being of such a depth in relation to the depth of the body that, in the completed carton, the side flaps are deformed into resiliently-locating engagement with the articles. The hinge lines connecting the partition flaps (26) to the support panel are offset to increase the resilience of the transverse partitions they form. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Carton with article locating insert This invention concerns cartons of the type having an insert for locating articles, e.g. food products, within the carton body.

It is well known to provide a carton with an insert comprising a plastics tray which has a number of isolated recesses formed therein to receive individual articles. The articles are thus positioned within the carton body in such a manner that they are separated from one another and this, to some extent at least, protects them against harm during transport and handling of the carton. Nonetheless, in the case of one such carton wherein the tray is preformed, the recesses are not closely tailored to the shape and dimensions of the articles to be received in the tray and, as a result, movement of each article within its recess is possible and damage may ensue should the carton undergo an impact.

Another type of insert for a carton is made from a board blank and has flaps folded up from a body panel of the blank to position individual articles inside the carton. Such inserts are described in U.K. Patent Specifications No. 971,452 and 1,034,008, for example. As shown in these Specifications, the flaps provide within the carton longitudinal carton sections whose ends are defined either by upright walls of the carton (Specification No. 971,452) or by upright walls of the insert (Specification No. 1 ,034,008). In both cases, the flaps are arranged to separate individual articles from one another but in either case, unless each article is chosen to fill the full length of its section, it will be free to slide longitudinally therein and, as before, damage may occur upon impact.

Equally, firm location of every article laterally of the section is not provided and this also may be detrimental to the condition of the articles after transport and handling.

An object of the present invention, therefore is to provide a carton with an insert which is arranged to locate articles positively in position.

According to the invention there is provided a carton packaging one or more articles which comprises a carton body and an insert for the carton body, the insert being integrally formed with a support panel overlying a base panel of the carton body and having the said one or more articles received thereon, and at least one resiliently deformable location means disposed along an edge of the support panel, the location means being deformed by engagement with the carton body into resilient engagement with the one or more articles so as to locate it or them within the carton body.

By use of the present invention a delicate article may be firmly yet yieldingly located within the carton body for transit and handling, so that the possibility of damage to the article is reduced.

Furthermore, by virtue of its deformability and resilience the location means may adapt itself to accommodate and locate articles of varying sizes.

Although it is possible for the insert to have only one location means, it is preferred that two location means are provided for engagement with opposed parts of the said one or more articles.

In a preferred embodiment the insert is made from a paperboard blank, and has two location means in the form of unitary flaps along opposed sides of the support panel whichis generally rectangular. The flaps are dimensioned so that when the insert is pushed into the carton body (in the case of an end loading carton) or, in the case of a top loading carton, the carton lid is closed, the flaps ride along the underside of the lid until they come into resilient engagement with the ends of articles located on the support panel. Because they necessarily extend some way along the top surfaces of the articles the flaps provide cushioning for the articles not only in the longitudinal sense, but also perpendicularly of the support panel.

In addition to location of the articles by the location means, separation of adjacent articles may also be desired for further protection. If desired, the insert may accordingly be provided with partition flaps upstanding from the support panel to define a plurality of carton sections for the articles. These partition flaps may be arranged to provide cushioning against article movement in the lateral sense, i.e. transversely of the carton sections.

The invention is described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Fig. 1 is a plan view of the insert for the first carton embodying the invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the insert carrying a number of articles, in this instance eclairs; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the insert partially inserted into the carton body; Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the same insert when used for a top loading carton which is in the process of being closed; and Fig. 5 is a plan view of a second insert.

Referring to Fig. 1 the illustrated insert 10 comprises a unitary paperboard blank having a central, generally rectangular support panel 1 2. As shown, two identical side flaps 14 are joined by fold lines 16 to the sides of the support panel 12, and two end flaps 20 are joined by fold lines 22 to the ends of the support panel 12. As will later become apparent, the side flaps 14 constitute means for resiliently locating articles on the support panel 12 in relation to a carton body into which the insert, with the articles thereon, is placed.

The support panel 12 is internally formed with six further flaps 26, each defined by a generally U-shaped slit 28 and a fold line 30 extending between the ends of the slit 28. The flaps 26 are arranged in associated pairs, the flaps of each pair having their fold lines approximately aligned with one another across the blank.

The arrangement of the flaps 26 is such that, when they are folded up from the plane of the panel 1 2 about the fold lines 30, they co-operate in their pairs to form three parallel partitions defining four elongate article-receiving sections 32 each extending laterally of the insert between the fold lines 1 6. Articles, for example eclairs 34, individually received in those sections 32 are thereby separated from one another. As will be clearly understood from Fig. 2, each partition extends for a substantial part of the width of the support panel 12 in approximately perpendicular relation to the latter.

To provide the co-operation between the flaps 26 of each pair, each flap has a projecting ear 35 at its end adjacent the associated flap, and the flaps of each pair are struck on opposite sides of their respective fold lines 30. The flaps are folded up sufficiently to force the ears resiliently past one another; the ears can then re-engage back-to-back to hold the flaps in their required upright positions.

A substantial degree of thickness for the partitions (over and above the thickness of the paperboard) is provided by offsetting the fold lines 30 of each pair of flaps 26 so that, as shown, the flaps 26 are partially overlapped longitudinally (as well as laterally) of the blank; the partitions therefore provide a degree of resilience to cushion the eclairs 34 against relative movements in their lateral direction. The offsetting of the fold lines also obviates any need to fold the flaps up through more than 900 to force the ears past one another as mentioned above.

Turning now to Fig. 3, the insert is shown partially inserted into a conventional rectangular carton 40 of the end loading type. In this condition, the side flaps 14 are both folded upwards from the support panel 12.

The support panel has approximately the same dimensions as a base panel (not visible) of the carton body 40, and the width (i.e. the dimension laterally of the blank) of each side flap 14 is selected to be less than the depth of the carton body between its base panel and a top panel 42 lying parallel to the base panel. Therefore, as the insert is inserted in the carton body, the side flaps are progressively turned back on themselves by engagement with the top panel 42, and by virtue of the resilience of the paperboard of which they are made they ride along the top panel 42 and so come into engagement with adjacent ends of the eclairs.As can be understood from Fig. 3, therefore, the insertion of the insert into the carton body causes the side panels to adopt a curved condition around the ends of the eclairs, at a spacing from the adjacent side panels 18 of the carton body. Accordingly, during subsequent transit and handling of the completed carton the side flaps 14 make firm yet yielding engagement with the eclairs to cushion them in their longitudinal sense. Cushioning in their lateral sense i.e. transversely of the article receiving sections 32, is provided by the separating flaps 26 as previously described. The separating flaps 26 themselves are terminated sufficiently far from the fold lines 1 6 to ensure that they do not impede the engagement of the side flaps 14 with the eclairs.

The end flaps 20 are folded upwards along the fold lines 22 so as in the closed carton to lie adjacent to, ana inside, the carton body flaps 35.

They are not sufficiently deep to engage the top panel 42 in the manner of the side flaps 14.

Instead, they give rigidity to the support panel 12, provide pull tabs which the consumer may employ to withdraw the insert from the carton body at the point of use, and facilitate the tucking-in of the carton body end flaps by the packer and, if and when reclosure is desired, by the consumer.

A second carton in accordance with the invention, this time having a conventional rectangular carton body 5Q of the top loading variety, is shown in Fig. 4 with the insert 10 in position on the base panel 52 of the body 50. As in the case of the carton body 40 of Fig. 3, the width of the side flaps 14 of the insert is less than the depth of the carton body 50 between its base panel 52 and its top panel 54 (when closed); the side flaps are therefore resiliently deformed around the ends of the eclairs 34 by engagement with the top panel 54 when the latter is being closed as shown in Fig. 4. During the closing of the top panel the side flaps ride along the undersurface of the lid to their required positions.

As with the first embodiment, the flaps then extend some way along the upper surface of the eclairs 34 so as to cushion the eclairs in the vertical sense, i.e. in the direction perpendicularly to the base panel 52, as well as in their longitudinal sense as described above.

Without departing from the scope of this invention, various modifications are possible to the insert described above. For example, and as is manifest from Fig. 5, the partition flaps 26 may be omitted since in the case of certain less fragile articles adequate location may be provided by the side flaps 14 alone; also as illustrated in Fig. 5, each of the flaps 14 may be replaced by a plurality of individual flaps 60 each arranged to engage a predetermined number (e.g. one) of the articles; and the end flaps 20 may be omitted. A further possibility is to provide the insert with a side flap 14 or row of individual flaps 60 along only one side of the insert; the thrust produced on the article or articles by his single location means may be reacted directly by the opposite side wall of the carton body or by some other device such, for example, as a resilient pad which is specially provided.

Claims (8)

1. A carton packaging one or more articles, which comprises a carton body and an insert for the carton body, the insert being integrally formed with a support panel overlying a base panel of the carton body and having the said one or more particles received thereon, and at least one resiliently deformable location means disposed along an edge of the support panel, the location means being deformed by engagement with the carton body into resilient engagement with the one or more articles so as to locate it or them within the carton body.

2. A carton as claimed in claim 1, wherein the insert comprises a blank of foldable sheet material, the or each location means being a flap or a plurality of flaps which is or are joined to the body panel along a fold line, the or each flap being dimensioned in relation to the carton body so as during the formation of the carton ot flex between the top and base panels of the carton body and move into resilient engagement with the one or more articles.

3. A carton as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, which includes two location means provided along opposed edges of the support panel for engagement with opposed parts of the said one or more articles.

4. A carton as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 when dependant from claim 2, which includes a plurality of partition flaps upstanding from the support panel to form at least one partition, the partition or partitions defining a plurality of carton sections for a like number of articles.

5. A carton as claimed in claim 4, wherein the partition flaps co-operate in one or more pairs of generally aligned flaps to form the said partition or partitions, the flaps of the or each pair being struck from the blank on opposite sides of respective generally aligned fold lines at which they are attached to the support panel, and having projecting ears at which they are mutually engaged when in their partition-forming positions.

6. A carton as claimed in claim 5, wherein the said fold lines of the partition flaps of the or each pair are offset so that when the partition is being formed the flaps come into mutual engagement at their said ears when still at an acute angle in relation to the body panel.

7. A carton, substantially as herein particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

8. An insert for a carton as claimed in claim 7.