GB2305905A

GB2305905A - Sleeve for enclosing and supporting a tray

Info

Publication number: GB2305905A
Application number: GB9703113A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Gordon David Edwards
Original assignee: Bonar Cartons Ltd
Current assignee: Bonar Cartons Ltd
Priority date: 1996-03-30
Filing date: 1997-02-14
Publication date: 1997-04-23
Also published as: GB9606799D0; GB9703113D0

Abstract

A sleeve 10 for fitting around a tray 4 of foodstuff has a projecting portion 18 arranged to enable the tray and sleeve to be stood on edge with the display face 12 of the sleeve (which covers the mouth of the tray) vertical, or almost vertical but facing slightly upwards. The sleeve is formed from a blank folded around the tray with its joined ends forming the protrusion 18. The protrusion extends along the length of the sleeve or there may be a spaced series of protrusions. The sleeve may be sealed to a flange around the mouth of the tray.

Description

Container with Tray and Sleeve The invention which is the subject of this application relates to the provision of improvements to containers comprising a tray for foodstuffs which are enclosed by a sleeve, said sleeve provided for the purpose of displaying the foodstuff held within the container and also for protecting the tray from damage and, in some instances, providing means for retaining the container within the sleeve.

As the sales of ready to eat and cooked meals from retail outlets increases, so there is an ever increasing demand for appropriate and advantageous packaging for the said foodstuffs. One well-known and much used type of container is to provide the foodstuff in a tray which can be made of plastics or metal foil which has a base and side walls and within which the foodstuff can be easily contained.

The opening into the tray is either sealed by a film which is sealed to a flange around the periphery flange of the side walls or, alternatively, and especially if the tray is made from metal, a board sheet can be applied to close the opening and retain the foodstuff therein by deforming the walls of the tray to trap the board in position.

The trays themselves are not readily printed upon and can be susceptible to damage such as puncture of the film, card or indeed walls of the tray and therefore it is commonly the case that the majority of the tray is enclosed by a sleeve which typically covers the opening, two of the side walls and the base portion and is wrapped around the same and thus protects the tray and its contents.

The conventional sleeve is wrapped around the tray and, in some instances can be formed with flap portions which fold inwardly to contact the tray in an attempt to prevent the tray from sliding through the apertures of the sleeve and hence being mislaid and, while these sleeves are found to be advantageous, they do have one particular disadvantage to which this invention is addressed.

This disadvantage is that the side walls of the sleeve are formed to lie at an angle of less than 900 to the display face of the sleeve in an attempt to maintain the tray portion, which also has angled sides, in a trapped position however, because the side walls are angled, it is only possible to display the container securely with the display face in a horizontal plane such that the opening of the tray faces upwardly. This is a disadvantage which has been tolerated for a number of years, but, as the quantities and varieties of foodstuffs provided in this form of container has increased, so the pressure on available space in, for example, freezers and cabinets has increased and the display of these packages in a flat position is not regarded as being an effective use of the available space and, furthermore, does not fully display the goods to the customer in the optimum manner.

As the side walls of the sleeve are angled, it is not possible with conventional packs to place the same in a position with the display face in a substantially vertical plane without the use of display supports. In one form, rubber grip mats can be provided on the surface upon which the trays are to be displayed and the containers when placed in a vertical plane are held by each other and the grip or friction provided by the gripmats. Alternatively, display stands made of plastics material or other suitable material with formed location means provided at regular intervals there along can be used so that a plurality of the containers can be placed in the location means at regular intervals in a substantially vertical position.

However, the disadvantage with both of these display means is that the requirement for additional display means that they are required to be managed, cleaned at regular intervals and, if lost, misplaced or damaged the packages cannot be displayed in the manner desired.

The aim of the present invention is to provide a tray and sleeve container for foodstuffs which can be displayed in a substantially vertical plane without the requirement for additional display means to be provided.

In a first aspect of the invention there is provided a container for a foodstuff, said container comprising a tray in which the foodstuff is placed and enclosed therein, and a sleeve which passes around at least a portion of the tray with at least one display face and wherein said sleeve, when formed, is provided with at least one protruding portion such that the container can be mounted for display with the display face in a substantially vertical plane with the protruding portion contacting a support surface.

In one embodiment of the invention, the protruding portion lies in the plane of the rear face of the sleeve and protrudes to an extent such that the end of the same, when in contact with a surface acts in conjunction with another part of the sleeve side wall adjacent thereto which also contacts the said surface to provide the support for the container in a substantially vertical display position.

In one embodiment the protrusion is formed by joining together the two ends of the sleeve blank which are sealed together to form the sleeve. In one embodiment the sleeve is provided to the packaging area in a flat form for sealing on specially designed equipment at the packaging area or alternatively can be provided preformed or preglued for hand packaging operation.

Typically the length of the protrusion relative to the other surface contact point of the sleeve is such as to allow the container to be positioned in a display position such that the main display face of the sleeve is in a substantially vertical plane but in a slightly upwardly facing position so as to maximise the display of the face to prospective customers.

In one embodiment, the protrusion can be provided substantially along the length of the sleeve. In an alternative embodiment, a plurality of protrusions at spaced intervals are provided along the length of the sleeve and, intermediate the protrusions, the sleeve can be shaped to enhance the visual appearance of the same.

Typically the tray is manufactured from plastics or foil material and the opening formed therein is sealed by either of plastics film sealed to a flange around the opening or a board sheet material and the sleeve is made from board material.

Specific embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings where: Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view of a container according to the invention; Figure 2 illustrates an end elevation of the container in a display position; Figure 3 illustrates a rear view of the container in a display position; and Figure 4 illustrates a blank of a sleeve according to the invention.

Referring firstly to Figure 1 there is illustrated a container 2 according to the invention which comprises a tray 4 which has side walls 6 and a base 8 and an opening which is sealed by a film thereby maintaining foodstuffs therein in a sealed condition. The tray 4 is partially enclosed by a sleeve 10 which has a display face 12, side walls 14 and a rear wall 16 which is shown in Figure 2 in more detail. The sleeve is wrapped around the tray to protect the film covering the opening of the same and also to provide a display face 12 by which the foodstuffs in the tray can be identified and displayed to prospective customers and also for manufacturers and cooking details to be printed thereon or on the rear face 16 or side walls of the sleeve.

The sleeve according to this invention also includes a protruding portion 18 as shown and, in Figures 2 and 3 there is shown the container according to the invention in one embodiment in a display position whereby the protrusion 18 contacts the surface 20 along with another part 22 of the sleeve which, in this case is the corner of the display face 12 and the side wall 14 and, in conjunction, the protrusion 18 and part 22 provide secure and stable location means for the container 2 in the display position shown.By allowing the container to be held in the position shown, the display face 12 is held in a substantially vertical position and so can be clearly and effectively displayed to prospective customers and, a plurality of said containers can be stacked one after the other along the surface 20 thereby providing effective use of available display space in retail outlets and in particular freezer cabinets provided in said retail outlets.

Figure 3 illustrates a rear view of the container of the invention in a display position and protrusions 18, in this embodiment, are provided at spaced intervals along the length of the sleeve and the portions 24 intermediate the protrusions are shaped to enhance the appearance of the container and save material usage. At the same time the tray is maintained in a secure position and, as the opening is sealed, so the foodstuff held within the tray is prevented from leaking from the same even when the tray is held in the substantially vertical display position.

Figure 4 illustrates one form of a sleeve blank which can be used according to the present invention and wherein the display face 12, and side walls 14 are provided in a normal manner with one of the side walls 14 provided with an additional part 18a depending therefrom which is to be joined when forming the blank into the sleeve to part 18b which is provided as an extra part of the rear face 16 and thus, when the portions 18a and 18b are joined together, the sleeve is formed and, furthermore, the protrusion 18 is also formed and thus, the erection of the sleeve is achievable using a substantially conventionally shaped blank and preferably using automated apparatus.

Thus the container according to the present invention utilises a sleeve which has a protrusion formed thereon and said protrusion allows the sleeve and tray held therein to form a container with a display face which can be positioned independently of other containers or additional display materials in a substantially vertical plane for display purposes. Thus considerable savings can be obtained; the vendors of the containers do not have to purchase or maintain additional display material, optimum use of the display space available can be achieved and the display face 12 of the container can be fully and effectively displayed to the customer and thus, it is submitted, the invention of this application has considerable advantages over the known prior art.

Claims

1. A container for foodstuff, said container comprising a tray in which the foodstuff is placed and enclosed therein, and a sleeve which passes around at least a portion of the tray which has at least one display face and wherein said sleeve, when in an erected form, is provided with at least one protruding portion such that the container is mounted for display with the display face in a substantially vertical plane with the protruding portion contacting a support surface.

2. A container according to Claim 1 wherein the protruding portion lies in the plane of the rear face of the sleeve and protrudes to an extent such that the end of the same, when in contact with the surface acts in conjunction with another part of the sleeve which also contacts the said surface to provide the support for the container in a substantially vertical display position.

3. A container according to Claim 1 wherein the protrusion is formed by joining together two ends of the sleeve blank which are sealed together to form the sleeve in an erected form.

4. A container according to any of the preceding claims wherein the length of the protrusion relative to the other surface contact point of the sleeve is such as to allow the container to be positioned in a display position such that the main display face of the sleeve is in a substantially vertical plane but with a slightly upwardly facing position so as to maximize the display of the face to prospective customers.

5. A container according to any of the preceding claims wherein the protrusion is provided substantially along the length of the sleeve.

6. A container according to any of the preceding claims wherein there is provided a plurality of protrusions at spaced intervals along the length of the sleeve.

7. A container according to any of the preceding claims wherein a tray is manufactured from plastics or foil material and the opening in the tray is sealed by either plastics film sealed to a flange around the opening or a board sheet material, and the sleeve is made from board material.

8. A sleeve for enclosing of foodstuff in a tray to form a container, said sleeve comprising a display face, two side walls depending from said display face and a rear face joining the opposing edges of the said side faces wherein the said sleeve is further provided with a protruding portion.

9. A sleeve according to the preceding claim wherein the protrusion in conjunction with another part of the sleeve contacts a support surface to allow the display face of the sleeve to be displayed in a substantially vertical position.

10. A container as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings;

11. A sleeve as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings;