JP6835430B2 - Package with magnetic closure mechanism - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates generally in the field of packaging, such as packaging for tobacco products. Specifically, this disclosure relates to a cigarette package.

There is no end to the desire to improve the ergonomic and practical design of the package. An area where this type of demand is strong is the field of providing packages for tobacco products such as cigarette packages.

Cigarette packages need to meet a wide range of high requirements. In particular, this package must not only be inexpensive and mass-produced, but also must be sturdy enough to store cigarettes safely, keep them fresh, and retain their original shape through repeated opening and closing. is there.

Today's cigarette packages are usually hinged capped packets, typically cardboard caskets with a hinged lid integrally formed at the top. The cigarettes are stored vertically so that the user can open the lid and pinch the edges to remove them.

For such packages, closing means have already been proposed that allow the user to open the small box for the first time with a force that exceeds its locking force. However, such closing means are difficult to open and close, especially when the package is full. Moreover, when the package is partially or completely empty, this closing means often fails to exert sufficient force on the lid to properly keep the lid in the closed position.

The present invention addresses the problem of reliable and effective closure of such a hinged package, and an object of the present invention is to provide a hinged package having an improved closing mechanism.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a housing containing a product and having an opening arranged so as to allow access to the product; and blocking access to the opening. A lid that is movable relative to the housing between the closed position and an open position that allows access to the opening; a plurality of lids arranged to magnetically hold the lid in the closed position. A package with a closing magnet component and; is provided. Here, the housing and the lid are each formed by folding a sheet of at least one sheet material, and the plurality of closing magnet parts are printed or coated on at least one surface of the sheet material, and at least each of them. It has a surface magnetic field strength of 150 G, includes a first magnet component provided in the housing and a second magnet component provided in the lid, and at least one of the closing magnet components. at least it has a tractive force per surface area of 5 g / cm ^2, respectively the first and second magnet parts, at least in part on the housing and in each region of the lid which overlaps in the above-mentioned closed position located in are in contact on top of each other at the closed position, the total contact surface area of the first and second magnet parts is at least 2 cm ^2.

The total contact surface area of the first and second magnet parts can be 4 to 10 cm ^2. The total contact surface area of these first and second magnet parts can be 4 to ^{8 cm 2.}

The first and second magnet parts may contain the same magnetic material.

At least a portion of the lid may be hinged with respect to the housing between the open and closed positions.

At least one of the above magnetic components may include a surface protective layer containing at least one selected from ink, varnish, wax, or a combination thereof.

A removable foil or sheet material provided to cover at least one of the above magnetic components may further be provided.

The housing and the lid are made of a folded body of a sheet of paper made of a sheet material. Each of the closing magnet parts may be applied on one surface of the paper made of the sheet material, or may be applied on two opposing surfaces of the paper made of the sheet material.

The housing may be an open top box including one front wall, one bottom wall, one rear wall and two side walls. The lid may be attached to the rear wall of the housing along one hinge wire and may include one top wall, one front wall and two side walls. The lid may be arranged at the closed position so that its front wall and side wall overlap at least partially with the front wall and side wall of the housing. One first closing magnet component may be attached to the front wall of the housing. Further, one second closing magnet component may be attached to one inner surface of the front wall of the lid portion.

The housing may be an open top box including one front wall, one bottom wall, one rear wall and two side walls. The lid may be attached to the rear wall of the housing along one hinge wire and may include one top wall, one front wall and two side walls. In the closed position, the lid portion is arranged such that its front wall and each side wall overlap at least partially with the front wall and each side wall of the inner frame extending from the open upper end of the housing. Good. One first closing magnet component may be attached to the front wall of the inner frame. Further, one second closing magnet component may be attached to one inner surface of the front wall of the lid portion.

The closing magnet component may include one or more selected from permanent magnets, ferromagnetic coatings, ferromagnetic metals, composite ferromagnetic materials or rare earth magnets.

Each of the closing magnet components may include a series of aligned SN magnetic poles.

Such packages can be used, for example, in tobacco products / smoking products such as cigarettes, cigars or cigarettes, especially in cardboard cigarette packaging boxes. However, its use is not limited to the relevant field, and for example, confectionery boxes and toothpick holders are assumed. The package may consist of cardboard, plastic, metal, wood, or any other suitable material.

The closing magnet component may be provided so as to attract two magnetizing components or one magnetizing component and one magnetizable component to each other.

The features of the present invention will be described based on examples with reference to the accompanying drawings below.
1A is an example of a packet with a hinged lid in the open position, FIG. 1B is a paper used for producing a packet with a hinged lid of FIG. 1A, and FIG. 1C is for an internal frame used for producing a packet with a hinged lid of FIG. 1A. It is a figure which shows the paper of. FIG. 2A is another example of a packet with a hinge lid, and FIG. 2B is a diagram showing a paper used for producing the packet with a hinge lid shown in FIG. 2A. FIG. 3A is still another example of the hinged packet, and FIG. 3B is a diagram showing the paper used for producing the hinged packet shown in FIG. 3A.

The following description is intended to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to manufacture and use the system and relates to a particular application. One of ordinary skill in the art will readily come up with various variations of the embodiments disclosed herein.

In the claims and the following description, the terms "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "top", "bottom", "side", etc. are used, but these are merely drawings. The position is only specified according to the positional relationship described in. Therefore, it is not intended to interpret the claims in connection with a specific direction.

FIG. 1 shows an example of a package 100 that takes the form of a packet with a hinged lid. The packet 100 includes a housing 110 and a lid 120. The housing 110 includes an opening 111, and when the lid 120 is in the open position as shown, the contents of the package, such as a cigarette, can be taken out through the opening. The lid portion 120 can be closed by rotating the lid portion 120 forward about the hinge portion 130 so that the contents of the housing 110 are not taken out.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the hinge portion 130 is a fold line appropriately formed on thick paper (blank), and therefore the housing 110 and the lid portion 120 are integrally molded. Alternatively, the housing 110 and the lid 120 may be separate bodies and may be connected by a hinge joint 130 having an appropriate structure. For example, a tubular portion is provided on one of the housing 110 and the lid 120, and the tubular portion receives a pin provided on the other of the housing 110 and the lid 120, and the tubular portion and the lid 120 are received. The pin may be coaxial and extend along the hinge wire 130.

The lid can be held in the closed position by the closing magnet parts 115, 125.

FIG. 1B shows a cardboard sheet for folding to form a packet 100 (excluding the internal frame 140). Each surface shown here basically indicates an outer surface, that is, each surface that defines the outer surface of the package shown in FIG. 1A after the paper (blank) is folded up.

The paper includes a front wall 113 and a rear wall 117 that face each other when the packet 100 is completed. The front wall and the rear wall are connected by a central bottom wall portion 116c.

At the completion of the packet, each front side wall 114a extending from the front wall 113 as a side flap is glued or attached to a rear side wall 114b extending from the rear wall 117 as a side flap. At the time of completion of the packet, the left and right bottom wall portions 116b and 116a extending from the left and right rear side wall portions 114b as vertical flaps are glued or attached to the central bottom wall portion 116c.

The hinge portion 130 is formed by a folding line that separates the rear wall 117 of the housing and the rear wall 127 of the lid. The left and right rear side wall portions 124b of the lid portion extend from the rear wall 127 of the lid portion as vertical flaps. On the other hand, the left and right top wall portions 128a and 128c of the lid portion extend as flaps from the left and right rear wall portions 124b of the lid portion, and these extend in the vertical direction adjacent to the top wall portion 128b in the center of the lid portion when the paper is unfolded. It is extended to. The top wall portion 128b at the center of the lid portion extends from the rear wall 127 of the lid portion as a side flap. The front wall portion 123a on the outside of the lid portion extends as a side flap from the top wall portion 128b in the center of the lid portion. The left and right front side wall portions 124a extend as vertical flaps from the front wall portion 123a on the outside of the lid portion. The front wall portion 123b inside the lid portion is a portion that supports the magnet component 125, and extends as a side flap from the front wall portion 123a outside the lid portion. The magnet component 125 can be, for example, extruded, attached, or embedded in the front wall portion 123b inside the lid portion, and can be printed as an example (for example, by a gravure printing method).

When molding the lid portion 120, the front wall portion 123b inside the lid portion is glued or attached to the front wall portion 123a outside the lid portion. The left and right top wall portions 128a and 128c are glued or attached to the central top wall portion 128b. The left and right front side wall portions 124a are glued or attached to the left and right rear side wall portions 124b, respectively.

FIG. 1C shows cardboard paper on which the inner frame 140 of the packet 100 is formed when folded. Each side wall 144 of the inner frame extends as a longitudinal flap from the front wall 143 of the inner frame. The magnetic component 115 can be, for example, extruded onto, attached to, or embedded in the front wall 143 of the inner frame, and can be printed as an example (eg, by gravure printing).

The extrusion method and printing method for applying each magnet component to each paper for forming the packet 100 and the internal frame 140 are the arrangement and shape of the magnet components 115 and 125 on the paper and eventually on the packet 100 formed. , Dimension and thickness can be flexibly adapted. These methods also have the advantage that it is easy to control the effect on the paper production speed, depending on the thickness of the magnet parts to be applied, and that the magnet parts can be colored, overprinted, or both. Yes, it does not interfere with commercial design opportunities.

When forming the packet 100, the front wall 143 of the inner frame is glued or attached to the inside of the front wall 113 of the housing. Each side wall 144 of the inner frame is glued or attached to the inside of each side wall 114 of the housing.

Each closing magnet component 115, 125 may be optionally or additionally attached to one or both of the respective side walls 144, 124 of the inner frame and lid, and may be attached to panels 144 and 124b, for example. Can be done.

FIG. 2 shows packet 200 as another example. This package is also a hinged packet, but without an internal frame.

The packet 200 includes a housing 210 and a lid 220. The housing 210 includes an opening 211, and when the lid 220 is in the open position as shown, the contents of the package, such as a cigarette, can be taken out through the opening 211. In this example, since the notch portion 212 is also provided, it is easier to take out the contents even when the packet is full or close to it. The lid portion 220 can be closed by rotating the lid portion 220 forward about the hinge portion 230 so that the contents of the housing 210 are not taken out.

Hinge 230 is a fold line which is appropriately formed on the thick paper sheet as shown in FIG. 2 B, thus it is integrally formed with the housing 210 and the cover portion 220. Alternatively, the housing 210 and the lid 220 may be separate bodies and may be connected by a hinge joint 230 having an appropriate structure. For example, a tubular portion is provided on one of the housing 210 and the lid 220, and the tubular portion receives a pin provided on the other of the housing 210 and the lid 220, and the tubular portion and the lid 220 are received. The pin may be coaxial and extend along the hinge wire 230.

The lid can be held in the closed position by each closing magnet component 215,225. Since there is no internal frame in this example, the front wall 213 of this packet extends upward longer toward the lid-side end of the packet than the front wall 113 of the packet 100 of the example shown in FIG. ing. Therefore, a part of the front wall 213 of the housing 210 overlaps with the front wall 223 of the lid 220 when the packet is closed, and the magnet component 225 for closing the lid 220 and the closing magnet component 225 provided on the front wall 213 of the housing are provided for closing. The magnet parts 215 overlap.

FIG. 2B shows a cardboard sheet that is folded to form a packet 200. Each of the illustrated surfaces is basically an outer surface.

The paper includes a front wall 213 and a rear wall 217 facing each other when the packet 200 is completed. The front wall and the rear wall are connected by a central bottom wall portion 216c. The front wall 213 of the housing carries the magnet component 215. The magnet component 215 can be, for example, extruded onto, attached to, or embedded in the front wall 213 of the housing.

When forming the packet, each front side wall 214a extending from the front wall 213 as a side flap is glued or attached to each rear side wall 214b extending from the rear wall 217 as a side flap. When forming a packet, the left and right bottom wall portions 216b and 216a extending from the left and right rear side wall portions 214b as vertical flaps are glued or attached to the central bottom wall portion 216c.

The hinge portion 230 is formed by a folding line that separates the rear wall 217 of the housing and the rear wall 227 of the lid. The left and right rear side wall portions 224b of the lid portion extend as vertical flaps from the rear wall portion 227 of the lid portion. On the other hand, the left and right top wall portions 228a and 228c of the lid portion extend as flaps from the left and right rear wall portions 224b of the lid portion, and these extend in the vertical direction adjacent to the top wall portion 228b in the center of the lid portion when the paper is unfolded. It is extended to. The top wall portion 228b at the center of the lid portion extends from the rear wall portion 227 of the lid portion as a side flap. The front wall portion 223a on the outside of the lid portion extends as a side flap from the top wall portion 228b in the center of the lid portion. Each of the left and right front side wall portions 224a extends as a vertical flap from the front wall portion 223a on the outside of the lid portion. The front wall portion 223b inside the lid portion carries the magnet component 225 and extends as a side flap from the front wall portion 223a outside the lid portion. The magnet component 225 can be extruded, attached, or embedded in, for example, the front wall portion 223b inside the lid portion by any of the modes described above in the previous embodiment.

When forming the lid portion 220, the front wall portion 223b inside the lid portion is glued or attached to the front wall portion 223a outside the lid portion. The left and right top wall portions 228a and 228c are glued or attached to the central top wall portion 228b. The left and right front side wall portions 224a are glued or attached to the left and right rear side wall portions 224b, respectively.

The closing magnet parts 215 and 225 can be optionally or additionally attached to one or both of the side walls 214 and 224 of the housing and lid, respectively, and can be attached to the panels 214a and 224a as an example. it can.

FIG. 3A shows the package 300 as another embodiment. This example is similar to the package 200 shown in FIG. 2A, but the structure of the lid is slightly different, the number of panels and flaps is small, and the magnet parts 315 and 325 are the front panel 313 and the lid of the container 310. It is formed on each inner surface of the front panel 323 of the portion 320.

The paper for forming the packet 300 is shown in FIG. 3B. The structure of this paper is similar to the structure shown in FIG. 2B except for the elements of the lid. However, in the case of this example, each surface shown is an inner surface.

The paper includes a front wall 313 and a rear wall 317 facing each other when the packet 300 is completed. The front wall and the rear wall are connected by a central bottom wall portion 316c. The front wall 313 of the housing carries the magnet component 315. The magnet component 315 can be extruded, attached, or embedded therein, for example, onto, for example, the housing front wall 313, in any of the modes described above in the previous embodiment.

When forming the packet, each front side wall 314a extending from the front wall 313 as a side flap is glued or attached to each rear side wall 314b extending from the rear wall 317 as a side flap. When forming a packet, the left and right bottom wall portions 316a and 316ab extending from the left and right rear side wall portions 314b as vertical flaps are glued or attached to the central bottom wall portion 316c.

The hinge portion 330 is formed by a folding line that separates the rear wall 317 of the housing and the top wall 328 of the lid. The left and right rear side wall portions 324a of the lid portion extend as vertical flaps from the top wall 328 of the lid portion. On the other hand, the left and right front wall portions 323a and 323c of the lid portion extend as flaps from the left and right side wall portions 324a of the lid portion. The top wall portion 328 of the lid portion extends as a lateral flap from the rear wall 317 of the housing. The front wall portion 323 of the lid portion extends as a side flap from the top wall portion 328 of the lid portion. The front wall 323 of the lid carries a magnet component 325, which is either extruded or attached onto the inner surface of the front wall 323 of the lid, for example, by any of the modes described above in the previous embodiment. , Or can be embedded therein.

When forming the lid portion 320, only the left and right front wall portions 323a and 323c of the lid portion are glued or attached to the inner surface of the front wall portion 323 of the lid portion. As a result, the front wall 323 of the lid, the side walls 324 of the lid, and the top wall 328 of the lid are perpendicular to each other, and the lid 320 rotates around the hinge 330 to close the packet housing 310. become.

Each magnet component can be formed on the inner surface of each panel 313, 323 or on the outer surface thereof. However, when these are applied to the inner surface, the magnet component 315 is at least hidden from the user's line of sight when the packet 300 is completed. As a result, the magnet component 315 on the front surface does not generate an extra thickness on the front panel 313, and once the lid portion 320 is closed, printing can be performed on the entire front panel 313, which is a new advantage. Therefore, packet wrapping can be done easily and better if necessary for industrial production.

The parameters of the closing magnet component in the various packet examples are as follows, for example.
-Thickness: less than 0.4 mm, for example 0.24 mm or 0.30 mm.
Surface magnetic field strength: over 150G, eg 180G or 200G or 210G.
Total contact surface area: at least 2 cm ² , preferably 4-20 ^{cm 2} , for example 20.09 cm ² or 19.88 cm ² .
Direct traction force per surface area (force applied perpendicular to the contact surface) required to pull the closing magnet parts apart from each other: at least 5 g / cm ² , for example 6.6 g / cm ² or 10.0 g / cm ² .
Shear force per surface area (force applied parallel to the contact surface) required to separate the closing magnet parts from each other: at least 5 g / cm ² , for example 6.3 g / cm ² or 5.0 g / cm ² .
These exemplary parameters provide several advantages.

For example, the thickness of the closing magnet component is naturally limited. When the closing magnet component rises from the surface of the sheet material, the gap formed between the lid and the housing becomes narrow. Such gaps look unattractive, and even when the package is closed, some of the contents can spill out (for example, if the chopped tobacco has fallen off the rolling paper). The closing magnet component is embedded in the sheet material (for example, the magnet component is attached to the recess of the sheet material, press working is adopted in the attachment process, or a notch that follows the shape of the closing magnet component is provided. If the surface is flush (by folding and stacking the flaps of the sheet material, etc.), reducing the thickness of the closing magnet component will reduce the thickness required for the sheet material. It leads to.

The surface magnetic field strength and the contact area of the closing magnet component affect the closing speed of the magnetic lock when the lid is opened. With the above exemplary parameters, the fact that the package is securely closed can be fed back to the user. This is because the magnetic field strength of the closing magnet component makes it possible to close the lock at a speed sufficient to hear a "click" when the lock is closed.

The surface magnetic field strength of the closing magnet component and their contact area determine the force required to open the magnetically locked packet. With the above exemplary parameters, the pressure expected for normal use (eg, squeezing the packet, or the packet being pushed into a pocket, or in the handbag) even when the package is empty (or nearly empty) The lock is strong enough to stay closed, even if it is added to the front of the housing (such as hitting something else).

The closing magnet component may include a series of aligned SN magnetic poles. The effect in this case is that when these closing magnet parts are overlapped and a shearing force is applied, they are alternately attracted and repelled as they move. As a result, the user feels a moderate resistance when opening the lid. This also further reduces the possibility of the package being inadvertently opened. That's because the lock can be stopped half-open without opening wide enough to spill the contents of the packet. In other words, even if a momentary shearing force is accidentally applied, each closing magnet component slides with respect to each other by one or two alternating widths of the magnetic poles, and no continuous force is applied. As long as it settles in a new half-open position.

Magnetic materials that can be applied by the extrusion method or the printing method and can be used for forming the magnetic component for closing the package of the present invention are described in, for example, International Publication Nos. 2002/040274 and 2004/036606. These contents are incorporated herein by reference.

The height of the lid portion of the package may be such that the closing magnet component provided on the inner surface of the lid portion does not come into contact with the contents of the package during opening and closing.

In place of or in addition to this, in order to prevent mutual contamination between the closing magnet part and the contents of the packet, cover at least the closing magnet part provided on the lid with varnish, lacquer or an equivalent thereof. It may be applied.

Alternatively or additionally, one or more of the magnetic components may be covered with a removable foil or sheet material. This allows the magnetic material to be protected until it is purchased. If this foil / sheet material is configured to reduce the magnetic field strength around the closing magnet component, they will act as a block, providing a magnetic closure (by peeling off the foil / sheet material). It is up to the user to choose whether to make it work or not. For example, if a user wants to repeatedly open a chewing gum packet in a short period of time, or if he wants to easily operate it with one hand (such as in a car cup holder), he may not want to activate the magnetic lock. is there. On the other hand, it may be better for the magnetic lock to work when the packet is randomly placed in a purse or opened only occasionally.

All of the illustrated packets are generally cubic. Each side may be sharp, rounded, or chamfered. Other suitable shapes may be, for example, a more curved, typically cylindrical shape for the cigarette, and other shapes may be appropriate depending on the content of the packet. Smaller products such as confectionery and chewing gum can be optionally contained in various stereotyped and amorphous packets, such as novelty packets with other shapes or character shapes.

The closing magnet component can be introduced into the packet at various stages of packet manufacturing, eg, before cutting the paper, between cutting and folding the paper, or after folding the paper. If the magnetic biasing means is supplied unmagnetized from the beginning, it can be magnetized at various stages of packet manufacturing. In order to determine the appropriate procedure, it is necessary to consider the interaction between the magnetic bias means and the metal parts of the production line.

Although the application examples of the present invention have been described above, it will be understood that other embodiments and modifications are possible.

In addition, those skilled in the art can modify or change the arrangement of specific shapes and specific features of the package. Other modifications and modifications will be obvious to those skilled in the art. These modifications and modifications may include known equivalents and other features, which may be used in place of or in addition to the features described herein. The features described in the separate embodiments may be incorporated into a single embodiment. On the contrary, the features described in the single embodiment may be realized separately or partially combined as appropriate.

Claims (12)

A housing that houses a product and has an opening that is arranged to allow access to the product.
A lid that is movable relative to the housing between a closed position that blocks access to the opening and an open position that allows access to the opening.
A plurality of closing magnet parts arranged so as to hold the lid portion in the closed position by magnetic force, and
It is a package with
The housing and the lid are each formed by folding at least one sheet of paper.
The plurality of closing magnet parts are printed or coated on at least one surface of the sheet material, each having a surface magnetic field strength of at least 150 G, and a first magnet part provided in the housing and the lid. It is equipped with a second magnet component provided inside the unit.
At least one of the closing magnet components has a traction force per surface area of ^{at least 5 g / cm 2.}
Each said first and second magnet parts is at least partially located, in contact on top of each other at the closed position in the housing and in each region of the lid overlapping In the closed position A package in which the total contact surface area of the first and second magnet parts is at least 2 cm ^2. The package according to claim 1, wherein the closing magnet component has ^{a shear force per surface area of at least 5 g / cm 2.} The total contact surface area of the first and second magnet parts, is 4～10Cm ^2, package according to claim 1 or 2. It said first and second magnet parts contains the same magnetic material, the package according to any one of claims 1 to 3. At least a portion relative to said housing, said turnable hinged between an open position and the closed position, the package described in any one of the請Motomeko 1 to 4 of the lid. The package according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein at least one of the magnetic parts comprises a surface protective layer containing at least one selected from ink, varnish, wax, or a combination thereof. The package according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a peelable foil or sheet material provided so as to cover at least one of the magnet parts. The housing and the lid are made of a folded sheet of paper made of a sheet material, and each closing magnet component is provided on one surface of the paper made of the sheet material, or the sheet material. It has been granted on two opposite surfaces of the sheet consisting of a package according to any one of請Motomeko 1 to 7. The housing is a top open box that includes one front wall, one bottom wall, one rear wall and two side walls.
The lid is attached to the rear wall of the housing along one hinge line and includes one top wall, one front wall and two side walls.
In the closed position, the lid portion is arranged such that its front wall and side wall overlap at least partially with the front wall and side wall of the housing.
One first closing magnet component is attached to the front wall of the housing.
The package according to claim 8, wherein one second closing magnet component is attached to one inner surface of the front wall of the lid portion. The housing is a top open box that includes one front wall, one bottom wall, one rear wall and two side walls.
The lid is attached to the rear wall of the housing along one hinge line and includes one top wall, one front wall and two side walls.
In the closed position, the lid is arranged such that its front wall and each side wall overlap at least partially with the front wall and side wall of the inner frame extending from the open upper end of the housing. ,
One first closing magnet component is attached to the front wall of the inner frame.
The package according to claim 8, wherein one second closing magnet component is attached to one inner surface of the front wall of the lid portion. Said closure magnet parts, permanent magnet, a ferromagnetic coating, a ferromagnetic metal, including one or more selected from composite ferromagnetic material or a rare earth magnet, according to any one of請Motomeko 1 to 10 package. Wherein each of the closure magnet part includes a series of SN poles aligned A package according to any one of請Motomeko 1 to 11.

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