JP2013540656A - Container with tamper evident mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

The tamper evident container 10 for display and storage of articles has an elongated pouch 16 having a closed end 26 and an open end 28. There is a collar 18, 20 connected to the open end of the pouch and a lid 22 pivotally connected to the collar 18, 20 to close the open end 28. The lid 22 has a flange 40 provided extending to a portion of the collar. A strap 24 extends around the collars 18, 20 and the flange 40 to prevent the lid 22 from being opened while in place.
[Selected figure] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to containers, and more particularly to tamper evident containers for display or storage of articles.

  Hair care articles such as rubber bands for hairpins and ponytails are often packaged and sold in small clear plastic containers. One form of prior art container is an elongated pouch that is closed at one end and open at the other end, an inner collar connected to the inside of the open end of the pouch, and around the inner collar An outer collar connected to the exterior of the open end of the pouch and a lid pivotally connected to the inner collar to seal the article within the container. The pouch is often made from a single piece of clear plastic sheet to display the items stored in the container to the prospective buyer. Prior art containers of such form include various articles other than hair care articles including but not limited to keys, jewelry, coins, memory sticks, digital storage devices for cameras, stationery, nuts, washers, and bolts Can also be used to store

  Prior art containers of this form can be easily opened and closed to allow the purchaser to access the items stored therein. However, a common problem is that a shoplifter often opens such a container and steals one or more articles from the container without purchasing the entire container of the item. As more than 20 items are often stored in such containers, prospective buyers of the container do not readily notice that one or two items are missing from the container. .

  A common solution to this problem is to place a clear plastic shrink wrap around the opening of the container. However, it has been found that the shrink wrap can be easily removed by hand so that a shoplifter can continue to steal one or more articles from the container. It is often not obvious to the purchaser of such prior art containers that the prior art containers have been tampered with and the articles removed from the containers because of the transparency of the shrink wrap.

  The object of the present invention is to overcome or substantially ameliorate the above-mentioned problems of the prior art containers, or at least provide a useful alternative.

According to the present invention, there is provided a tamper evident container for display and storage of articles, comprising:
(A) an elongated pouch having a closed end and an open end;
(B) a collar connected to the open end of the pouch;
(C) a lid pivotally connected to the collar so as to close the open end, the lid having a flange provided extending to a portion of the collar;
(D) a strap extending around the collar and the flange to prevent the lid from being opened while the strap is in place;
A tamper evident container for display and storage of articles is provided.

  In a preferred form of the invention, the collar is an inner collar connected to the inside of the open end of the pouch, and an outer collar connected to the outside of the open end of the pouch around the inner collar. ,including.

  More preferably, the lid is pivotally connected to the inner collar.

  Preferably, the strap extends around the outer collar.

  Preferably, the flange has a channel for receiving the strap so that the strap is not pulled downward from the container and does not fall off.

  Preferably, the inner collar and the outer collar are configured to be mateably connected through one or more openings in the elongated pouch.

  Preferably, the straps are connected at both ends by buckles.

  More preferably, the strap is not configured to be removed by hand without the use of a tool.

  In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the security card is attached to the strap of the container, the configuration being such that when the strap is removed, the security card is no longer attached to the container, which is tampered with Act as proof.

  Preferably, the warranty card may be printed with retail information about the product stored in the container.

  Preferably, the security card has a hanger opening.

  BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS For a more complete understanding and practice of the present invention, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a front perspective view of a tamper evident container according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention having a warranty card attached for sale. Figure 2 is an exploded view of the container shown in Figure 1; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the lid of the container shown in Figure 1; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the inner collar of the container shown in Figure 1; FIG. 2 is an enlarged front perspective view of the bottom of the container of FIG. 1 and the attached security card. FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the container of FIG. 1 and the attached warranty card. Figure 2 is a rear perspective close-up view of the container of Figure 1 and the bottom of the attached warranty card; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the bottom of the container shown in Figure 1 with the lid open; FIG. 7 is a front view of a tamper evident container according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention having an alternative security card configuration. FIG. 10 is a front view of a container similar to the container shown in FIG. 9 having another alternative security card configuration.

  FIG. 1 shows a tamper evident device 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. A warranty card 12 is attached to the container 10. The warranty card 12 is used to display retail information regarding the product (not shown) stored in the container 10. The security card 12 can have a hanger opening 14 to allow the container 10 to be hung from a hook or hung in a shelf (not shown).

  FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of the components of the container 10. The container 10 has an elongated pouch 16, an inner collar 18, an outer collar 20, a lid 22 and a strap 24. The elongated pouch 16 has a closed end 26 and an open end 28. The elongated pouch 16 is made of 0.5 mm thick polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic sheet material formed by a longitudinal heat weld (not shown) and then the closed end 26 is sealed flat by heat welding It can be done. High frequency welding or other suitable processes can also be used. The sheet material is generally transparent to display the items stored in the container 10 to prospective buyers, but a pattern can be provided on the sheet material for aesthetic appeal.

  There are a plurality of openings 30 towards the open end 28 of the pouch 16. Although six openings 30 are shown in the figure, any number of openings 30 may be provided in accordance with the present invention. The inner collar 18 also has an opening 32 corresponding to the position of the opening 30 of the pouch 16. An elongated shoulder 34 of the inner collar 18 limits the insertion of the inner collar 18 into the pouch 16 and vertically aligns the opening 30 of the pouch 16 with the opening 32 of the inner collar 18. The projections 36 of the outer collar 20 penetrate into the openings 30 and 32 and the projections fit into the openings 32 of the inner collar 18. The inner collar 18 is connected to the inside of the open end 28 of the pouch 16 and the outer collar 20 is connected to the outside of the pouch 16 around the inner collar 18.

  The lid 22 has a flange 40 that extends over the outer collar 20 (see FIG. 5). The straps 24 extend around both the outer collar 20 and the flange 40 of the lid 22 to tie the flange 40 to the outer collar 20 (see FIG. 5). The flange 40 may have a channel 42 for the straps 24 so that the straps 24 do not pull downward from the container 10 (see FIGS. 3 and 5).

  The lid 22 has a nub 44 that engages the edge 46 of the inner collar 18. The lid 22 is capable of pivoting relative to the inner collar 18 (see FIG. 8), corresponding hinge components 54, 56 and 58 (see FIG. 4) on the inner collar 18. And the hinge components 48, 50 and 52 that engage (respectively).

  The strap 24 is connected at both ends by a buckle 60 shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. The straps 24 also secure the security card 12 to the container 10. The strap 24 is made of a rigid form of plastic and is therefore configured to be removed by a cutting tool (not shown). The force required to remove the strap 24 is sufficient to prevent the shoplifter from opening the container 10 and stealing the items contained therein. Usually, a security tag (not shown) is attached to the security card 12. This security tag is configured to activate an alarm when a shoplifter tries to steal the container 10 from the store.

  The container with the warranty card shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 represents an alternative configuration. Similar features between the container of FIGS. 1 to 8 and the container of FIGS. 9 and 10 are identified by the same reference numerals. Other configurations may not include the warranty card, or may include alternative features to the warranty card of various configurations.

  It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes can be made in the details of the design and construction of the tamper evident container described above without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Claims (9)

A tamper evident container for displaying and storing articles,
(A) an elongated pouch having a closed end and an open end;
(B) a collar connected to the open end of the pouch;
(C) a lid pivotally connected to the collar so as to close the open end, the lid having a flange provided extending to a portion of the collar;
(D) a strap extending around the collar and the flange to prevent the lid from being opened while the strap is in place;
A container with a tamper-evident mechanism for display and storage of articles comprising: The collar is an inner collar connected to the inside of the open end of the pouch, and an outer collar connected to the outside of the open end of the pouch around the inner collar.
A container with a tamper evident mechanism according to claim 1 comprising   The tamper evident container of claim 2, wherein the lid is pivotally connected to the inner collar.   The tamper evident container of claim 3, wherein the strap extends around the outer collar.   5. A tamper evident container as recited in claim 4, wherein said flange includes a channel for receiving said strap so that said strap does not pull downwardly from said container.   The tamper evident container of claim 5, wherein the inner collar and the outer collar are configured to be mateably connected through one or more openings in the elongate pouch.   The tamper evident container according to claim 6, wherein the straps are connected at both ends by buckles.   8. The tamper evident container of claim 7, wherein a security card is attached to the strap of the container.   The tamper evident container according to claim 8, wherein the security card has a hanger opening.

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