JP7205293B2 - Cushioning material, package - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cushioning member accommodated in a packing box together with an object to be packed, and a package including the cushioning member.

Precision instruments such as printers, copiers, and multi-function machines are housed in packing boxes together with cushioning members and distributed as packages. In general, a molded member made of foamed resin, a member made of folded corrugated cardboard, an air pack in which air is enclosed, or the like is employed as the cushioning member.

For example, it is known that the cushioning member made of folded corrugated cardboard is arranged in a paper discharge space of an image forming apparatus (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-100003). In this case, the flat corrugated paper of the cushioning member is inserted between the inner surface of the packing box and the outer surface of the image forming apparatus.

JP 2009-73514 A

By the way, since the packaging box is often made of corrugated cardboard, it is preferable that the cushioning member is also made of the same corrugated cardboard in that the packaging box and the cushioning member can be recycled collectively.

Moreover, in the package, it is important to protect the corners of the object to be packed by the cushioning member. However, it is often the case that a sufficient cushioning effect cannot be obtained simply by inserting flat corrugated cardboard between the inner surface of the packing box and the outer surface of the item to be packed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a cushioning member and a package including the cushioning member that can protect the corners of an object to be packed with a high cushioning effect by a cushioning plate such as corrugated cardboard.

A cushioning member according to one aspect of the present invention is a cushioning member that is accommodated between a packing box and an object to be packed and that contacts the top surface and side surfaces of the object to be packed. The cushioning member has a flat base and a cushioning block that includes a part of the base and is three-dimensionally bent. The cushioning block has a rectangular tubular portion, an overlapping portion, and an upright portion. The square tube portion is a portion folded into a square tube shape together with a portion of the base portion, and includes a first wall portion that is a portion of the base portion, a second wall portion that faces the first wall portion, and the second wall portion that faces the first wall portion. It has a first wall portion, a third wall portion connected to the second wall portion, and a fourth wall portion connected to the second wall portion and opposed to the third wall portion. The overlapping portion is a portion bent from the fourth wall portion and overlaps the first wall portion. The standing portion is a portion bent from the overlapping portion, and stands up from the overlapping portion toward the second wall portion. The upright portion includes a penetrating piece penetrating through a slit formed in the second wall portion and protruding to the outside of the rectangular tubular portion. The penetrating piece comprises a pair of side surface protection portions formed parallel to the folds of the rectangular tubular portion and extending along the side surface of the object to be packed, and a pair of pieces bent from the side surface protection portions along a direction orthogonal to the side surface protection portions. and a reinforcing portion.

A package according to another aspect of the present invention includes a packaging box made of a cushioning plate material, an object to be packaged housed in the packaging box, and the cushioning member.

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it becomes possible to provide the cushioning member which can protect the corner|angular part of the to-be-packaged object with a high cushioning effect with a cushioning board|plate material like corrugated paper, and a package containing the same.

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a package including an upper cushioning member according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the main part of the upper cushioning member according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a side view of the main part of the upper cushioning member and a cross-sectional view of the packing box according to the first embodiment. 4 is a bottom view of the upper cushioning member according to the first embodiment. FIG. FIG. 5 is a developed view of the upper cushioning member according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the upper cushioning member according to the second embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the following embodiment is an example that embodies the present invention, and does not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

[First embodiment]
The upper cushioning member 3 according to the first embodiment is a cushioning member accommodated in the packing box 1 together with the object 9 to be packed. For example, the object to be packed 9 is an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a copier, or a multifunction machine. The image forming apparatus is an example of precision equipment.

The object to be packed 9 is housed in the packing box 1 together with the upper cushioning member 3 and distributed as a package 10 . That is, the package 10 includes a packing box 1, and an object to be packed 9 and an upper cushioning member 3 accommodated in the packing box 1, respectively. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the package 10 further includes four lower cushioning members 2 accommodated in the packaging box 1 together with the items 9 to be packaged.

The packing box 1 and the upper cushioning member 3 are each made of a single bent cushioning plate. Specifically, the packaging box 1 and the upper cushioning member 3 are each made of a folded piece of corrugated cardboard.

On the other hand, each of the lower cushioning members 2 is composed of a plurality of corrugated cardboards that are stacked and adhered. It is also conceivable that each of the lower cushioning members 2 is a molded member made of foamed resin.

Each of the lower cushioning members 2 is inserted between the lower corner portion, which is the boundary portion between the bottom surface 91 of the item to be packed 9 and two adjacent side surfaces 92, and the bottom plate portion 11 and the two adjacent side plate portions 12 of the packing box 1. be done. The four lower cushioning members 2 support the load of the object 9 to be packed.

The upper cushioning member 3 is accommodated between the packing box 1 and the item to be packed 9 and contacts the upper surface 93 and the side surface 92 of the item to be packed 9 . That is, a part of the upper cushioning member 3 is inserted between the upper surface 93 of the item 9 to be packed and the top plate portion 13 of the packing box 1, and the other part of the upper cushioning member 3 is inserted between the item 9 to be packed. It is inserted between the side surface 92 and the side plate portion 12 of the packing box 1 . Note that the top plate portion 13 of the packaging box 1 is a so-called inner flap or outer flap.

By the way, since the packaging box 1 is often made of corrugated cardboard, it is preferable that the upper cushioning member 3 is also made of the same corrugated cardboard in that the packaging box 1 and the upper cushioning member 3 can be recycled together.

Moreover, in the package 10, it is important to protect the upper corners of the object 9 to be packed by the upper cushioning member 3. As shown in FIG. However, simply inserting flat corrugated cardboard between the inner surface of the packing box 1 and the outer surface of the object to be packed 9 often does not provide a sufficient cushioning effect.

The upper cushioning member 3 can protect the upper corners of the object to be packed 9 with a high cushioning effect by using a cushioning plate such as corrugated cardboard. Hereinafter, the configuration of the upper cushioning member 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5. FIG.

[Upper cushioning member 3]
The upper cushioning member 3 has at least one cushioning block 32 that is three-dimensionally bent. The cushioning block 32 is the main part of the upper cushioning member 3 . In this embodiment, the upper cushioning member 3 has a flat base 31 and two cushioning blocks 32 . Buffer block 32 includes a portion of base 31 . That is, the multiple buffer blocks 32 are formed integrally with one base 31 .

Each of the cushioning blocks 32 has a square tubular portion 33 , an overlapping portion 34 and an upright portion 35 . The rectangular tubular portion 33 is a portion bent into a square tubular shape, and has four wall portions 331 to 334 . The four walls 331-334 include a first wall 331, a second wall 332, a third wall 333 and a fourth wall 334 (see FIG. 2).

The first wall portion 331 is part of the base portion 31 . The second wall portion 332 faces the first wall portion 331 . The second wall portion 332 is a portion along the upper surface 93 of the object to be packed 9 (see FIG. 3). The third wall portion 333 is continuous with the first wall portion 331 and the second wall portion 332 via corners. The third wall portion 333 and the fourth wall portion 334 are adjacent to the second wall portion 332 . The third wall portion 333 faces the fourth wall portion 334 .

The first wall portion 331 is a portion along the inner surface of the top plate portion 13 of the packaging box 1 (see FIG. 3). The base 31 includes first walls 331 of two buffer blocks 32 . The third wall portion 333 is a portion along the inner surface of the side plate portion 12 of the packing box 1 .

As shown in FIGS. 2, 4, and 5, the second wall portion 332 is formed with a triple slit 3321, which is a three-sided polygonal slit that forms two corners 3321a. That is, the triple slit 3321 is a U-shaped slit having two corners 3321a. For convenience, in FIG. 5, the inner opening of the slit is hatched. In FIG. 5, broken lines are fold lines for valley folds, and dashed-dotted lines are fold lines for mountain folds.

The triple slit 3321 consists of a first slit 33211 formed along the longitudinal direction of the rectangular tubular portion 33 and a pair of second slits 33212 formed by extending from the first slit 33211 to the third wall portion 333 side. including. A pair of second slits 33212 are formed along a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the rectangular tubular portion 33 .

The overlapping portion 34 is a portion that continues to the fourth wall portion 334 and overlaps the inner surface of the first wall portion 331 . The overlapping portion 34 is a portion bent from the fourth wall portion 334 . The rising portion 35 is a portion that continues to the overlapping portion 34 and rises from the overlapping portion 34 toward the second wall portion 332 . The standing portion 35 is a portion bent from the overlapping portion 34 .

The upright portion 35 has a root portion 351 connected to the overlapping portion 34 and a penetrating piece 352 including a portion connected to the root portion 351 . The penetrating piece 352 penetrates the triple slit 3321 formed in the second wall portion 332 and protrudes to the outside of the rectangular tubular portion 33 .

The penetrating piece 352 is composed of three plate portions that form two corners 3521a and are continuous. That is, the penetrating piece 352 has a U-shaped cross section with two corners 3521a. The penetrating piece 352 includes a first plate portion 3521 and a pair of second plate portions 3522 .

The first plate portion 3521 is a plate-like portion that continues to the root portion 351 . The first plate portion 3521 is formed parallel to the fold line of the rectangular tubular portion 33 . The first plate portion 3521 protects the side surface of the object to be packed 9 by following the side surface 92 of the object to be packed 9 . Note that the first plate portion 3521 is an example of a side protection portion.

The pair of second plate portions 3522 are respectively connected to the first plate portions 3521 and face each other. The two corners 3521a are formed by bending portions of the standing portion 35 closer to the tip than the base portion 351 along two creases along the direction in which the standing portion 35 rises from the overlapping portion 34. there is The pair of second plate portions 3522 are connected to the first plate portion 3521 with two corners 3521a as boundary portions.

The pair of second plate portions 3522 extends from the first plate portion 3521 toward the third wall portion 333 . The pair of second plate portions 3522 are portions separated from the root portion 351 by the pair of notches 35a and bent from the first plate portion 3521 toward the third wall portion 333 side. The pair of second plate portions 3522 is an example of a pair of reinforcing portions that reinforce the penetrating piece 352 .

The penetrating piece 352 penetrates the triple slit 3321 and protrudes toward the outer surface of the second wall portion 332 . That is, the first plate portion 3521 of the penetrating piece 352 penetrates the first slit 33211 of the triple slit 3321 , and the pair of second plate portions 3522 of the penetrating piece 352 penetrates the pair of second slits 33212 of the triple slit 3321 . passes through.

Further, the second wall portion 332 has an engaging piece 3322 protruding into the triple slit 3321 from the edge of the triple slit 3321 . In this embodiment, the engaging piece 3322 crosses part of the triple slit 3321 .

A first opening 3521a is formed in a portion of the penetrating piece 352 that penetrates the triple slits 3321 (see FIGS. 2, 4, and 5). The engaging piece 3322 is inserted into the first opening 3521a of the penetrating piece 352 (see FIGS. 2 and 4). As a result, the portion of the second wall portion 332 inside the triple slit 3321 is reinforced by being connected to the through piece 352 .

In this embodiment, the first opening 3521 a is formed in the first plate portion 3521 of the penetrating piece 352 . It is also conceivable that the first opening 3521a is also formed in the pair of second plate portions 3522 of the penetrating piece 352 . In this case, the second wall portion 332 further has two engaging pieces 3322 that are inserted into the first openings 3521a of the pair of second plate portions 3522 .

The upper cushioning member 3 further has a first cut-and-raised portion 36 corresponding to the rectangular tubular portion 33 . In this embodiment, the upper cushioning member 3 has two first cut-and-raised portions 36 corresponding to the two rectangular tubular portions 33 .

The first cut-and-raised portion 36 is cut and raised from the base portion 31 and stands up along the outer surface of the fourth wall portion 334 . A second opening 3342 is formed in the fourth wall portion 334 at a position corresponding to the first cut-and-raised portion 36 .

As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, the upper cushioning member 3 further has a second cut-and-raised portion 3341 extending from the second wall portion 332 . The second cut-and-raised portion 3341 is a portion cut and raised from the fourth wall portion 334 .

A second opening 3342 is formed in a portion of the fourth wall portion 334 corresponding to the second cut-and-raised portion 3341 . A portion of the first cut-and-raised portion 36 is inserted into the second opening 3342 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). Thereby, the fourth wall portion 334 is reinforced by being connected to the first cut-and-raised portion 36 which is a part of the base portion 31 .

As shown in FIG. 3 , the upper cushioning member 3 has the outer surface of the second wall portion 332 and the surface of the penetrating piece 352 along the top surface 93 and the side surface 92 of the item to be packed 9 , and the penetrating piece 352 extends along the packing box 1 . is inserted between the inner surface of the side plate portion 12 and the side surface 92 of the object 9 to be packed, and is accommodated in the packing box 1. - 特許庁

More specifically, with the outer surface of the second wall portion 332 along the upper surface 93 of the item to be packed 9 and the surface of the first plate portion 3521 of the penetrating piece 352 along the side surface 92 of the item to be packed 9, An upper cushioning member 3 is accommodated in the packing box 1. - 特許庁Therefore, the pair of second plate portions 3522 of the penetrating piece 352 face the inner surface of the side plate portion 12 of the packing box 1 .

The upper surface 93 and the side surface 92 of the item to be packed 9 are an example of two outer surfaces adjacent to the upper corner of the item to be packed 9 .

The rectangular tubular portion 33 of the upper cushioning member 3 has a fourth wall portion 334 and a third wall portion 333 extending in a direction perpendicular to the upper surface 93 of the object to be packed 9 and the top plate portion 13 of the packing box 1 . Therefore, the square tubular portion 33 is highly effective in absorbing the impact on the upper surface 93 of the object 9 to be packed.

Similarly, the penetrating piece 352 of the upper cushioning member 3 has a pair of second plate portions 3522 along the direction orthogonal to the side surface 92 of the item to be packed 9 and the side plate portions 12 of the packing box 1 . Therefore, the penetrating piece 352 has a high effect of absorbing the impact on the side surface 92 of the object 9 to be packed.

Therefore, by adopting the upper cushioning member 3, the corners of the object to be packed 9 can be protected with a high cushioning effect by a cushioning plate such as corrugated paper.

Moreover, when the upper cushioning member 3 is adopted, the member for protecting the upper portion of the object to be packed 9 is composed of a single cushioning plate. As a result, it is easy to recycle members such as corrugated cardboard that protect the object 9 to be packed.

[Second embodiment]
Next, an upper cushioning member 3A according to a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 6, the same components as those shown in FIGS. 1-5 are given the same reference numerals.

Differences of the upper cushioning member 3A from the upper cushioning member 3 will be described below. The upper cushioning member 3A has a configuration in which two cushioning blocks 32 are added as compared with the upper cushioning member 3 shown in FIGS. That is, the upper cushioning member 3A has four cushioning blocks 32. As shown in FIG.

Like the upper cushioning member 3, the upper cushioning member 3A is also made of a single cushioning plate. A typical example of the cushioning plate material is corrugated board. The base portion 31 also includes the first wall portions 331 of the rectangular tubular portions 33 of the four cushioning blocks 32 .

The upper cushioning member 3A is accommodated in the packaging box 1 with the four penetrating pieces 352 inserted between the inner surfaces of the four side plate portions 12 of the packaging box 1 and the four side surfaces 92 of the object 9 to be packed. there is In FIG. 6, the object to be packed 9 and the packing box 1 are indicated by imaginary lines (two-dot chain lines).

Even when the upper cushioning member 3A is employed, the same effects as when the upper cushioning member 3 is employed can be obtained.

1: Packing box 2: Lower cushioning member 3: Upper cushioning member 3A: Upper cushioning member 9: Object to be packed 10: Package 11: Bottom plate 12: Side plate 13: Top plate 31: Base 32: Buffer block 33: Rectangular tubular portion 34 : Overlapping portion 35 : Standing portion 35 a : Notch 36 : First cut-and-raised portion 91 : Bottom surface 92 : Side surface 93 : Top surface 331 : First wall portion 332 : Second wall portion 333 : Third wall portion 334 : Fourth wall portion 351 : Root portion 352 : Penetrating piece 3321 : Triple slit 3322 : Engaging piece 3341 : Second cut-and-raised portion 3342 : Second opening 3521 : First plate portion 3521a : First opening 3522 : Second plate Part 33211: first slit 33212: second slit

Claims (4)

A cushioning member that is housed between a packing box and an item to be packed and contacts the upper surface and side surfaces of the item to be packed,
a flat base;
a cushioning block that includes a part of the base and is folded into a three-dimensional shape,
The buffer block is
It is a portion folded into a rectangular tube shape together with a part of the base, and is a part of the base, a first wall, a second wall facing the first wall, the first wall and the second wall. a rectangular tube portion having a third wall portion connected to two wall portions and a fourth wall portion connected to the second wall portion and facing the third wall portion;
an overlapping portion that is a portion bent from the fourth wall portion and overlaps the first wall portion;
a standing portion which is a portion bent from the overlapping portion and which stands up from the overlapping portion toward the second wall;
The standing portion includes a penetrating piece that penetrates a slit formed in the second wall portion and protrudes to the outside of the rectangular tubular portion,
The penetrating piece is
a side surface protection portion formed parallel to the fold of the square tube portion and along the side surface of the object to be packed;
and a pair of reinforcing portions bent from the side protection portion along a direction orthogonal to the side protection portion. An opening is formed in a portion of the penetrating piece that penetrates the slit,
2. The cushioning member according to claim 1, wherein said second wall portion has an engaging piece protruding from an edge of said slit and inserted into said opening of said penetrating piece. 3. The cushioning member according to claim 1, comprising a plurality of said cushioning blocks integrally formed with one said base. A packing box made of cushioning plate material;
an object to be packed housed in the packing box;
A package comprising the cushioning member according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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