NZ335961A - Container/ wall surround assembly with surround interengaging with container at walls to provide for uplifting - Google Patents

Abstract

The container is formed from a blank as shown. A surround as shown is located down over the container with openings 13 providing access at opposite ends to fold lines 6 to enable uplifting of the container.

Description

NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT, 1953 No: 335961 Date: 26 May 1999 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION "Container/Surround Assemblies" We, CARTER HOLT HARVEY LIMITED a company duly incorporated under the laws of New Zealand of 640 Great South Road, Penrose, Auckland, New Zealand, do hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: Intellectual Property Office of NZ 1 1 APR 2000 Received The present invention relates to article or produce carrying assemblies, components thereof and related methods of use thereof. Many forms of container are known for carrying produce. The present invention relates to a container of a kind capable of being erected from a blank of a planar material (eg corrugated board or a paper board) or from multiple blank pieces of such a material.

New Zealand patent specification 230735 the full content of which is hereby included relates to an assembly of such a container in conjunction with a cover having side and end walls of a trapezium configuration whereby hand holds provided by flaps to be expressed from the plane of the blank from which the cover is formed allow an uplifting with hand holds of the covered container. The present invention relates to similar such structures but having an advantage there over.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an assembly which will provide an alternative to any such system.

In a first aspect the invention consists in an assembly comprising or including; a container (flap closeable or otherwise) having a substantially rectangular base and upstanding walls, and a surround for the upstanding walls (optionally flap closeable at least in part), wherein two opposed walls of said container have or include a downwardly directed edge or foldline (other than an edge or foldline defined in conjunction with a hand engageable opening) above the base thereof. and wherein said surround provides an opening for or to each said downwardly directed edge or fold-line to enable uplifting of said container with said surround.

Preferably said surround includes flaps to overlie (at least in part) said container. Preferably said surround is of a planar materials and each said opening of said surround is provided by a flap movable out of the plane of such material.

Preferably each said flap is engageable under its proximate said downwardly direct edge or foldline.

Preferably said container is formed from a planar material.

Preferably said downwardly directed edge or fold-line of a flap extension of the wall panel hinged from the base, the extension being held downwardly over said wall panel by blank provided web connection(s) to each of the flanking wall panels.

Preferably said planar material of said container is a paperboard including laminate. Preferably said laminate has a corrgated core.

Preferably said planar material of said surround is of a paperboard laminate. Preferably said surround is bottomless and has closeable flap(s) extending from said flanking wall(s) (preferably two flaps) and said wall panels (preferably two flaps).

Preferably said container has closeable flap(s) extending from said flanking wall(s) (preferably two flaps).

Preferably said surround is slightly longer and wider respectively than the corresponding exterior dimensions of said container.

In a further aspect of the present invention consists in an assembly comprising or including; a container having at least a substantially a rectangular base and upstanding walls and a surround for the upstanding walls which does not underlie the base of the container yet which optionally includes one or more flaps capable of overlying part of said container irrespective of whether or not said container itself includes any flap closure aspect, wherein two opposed walls of said container have a flap extension thereof downwardly directed from a fold line from the respective wall to define a downwardly directed edge or fold line capable of being engaged directly or indirectly to uplift at least in part the container. Preferably the downwardly directed edge or fold line is held in association with the proximate wall panel by blank provided web connection(s) to each of the flanking wall panels of those wall panels having said downwardly directed edge on fold-line.

Preferably said assembly is an assembly as previously defined.

In still a further aspect the present invention consists in a container formed from a blank of the assembly as previously defined, said container has a downwardly directed edge or fold-line of an extension of the wall panel hinged from the blank base, the extension being held downwardly over said proximate wall panel by any one or more of (i) the surround, (ii) an under tucking of an extension beyond said extension fold-line, under the blank provided web connection to each of the flanking wall panels.

In still a further aspect the present invention consists in a container substantially as herein described with reference to any one or more of the accompanying drawings.

In yet a further aspect the present invention consists in a surround for an assembly as previously defined. Preferably said surround is substantially as herein described with reference to any one or more of the accompanying drawings.

In still a further aspect the present invention consists in the use of an assembly in accordance with the present invention to transport or pack or to package articles or produce.

In a further aspect the present invention consists in an assembly comprising or including; a container (flat closeable or otherwise) having a substantially rectangular base and upstanding wall, and a surround for the upstanding walls, wherein a downwardly directed edge or fold line is provided at two opposed ends of said container by at least one wall for each said downwardly directly edge or fold-line, to allow handling of the said container and wherein said surround provides an opening for each said downwardly edge or fold-line to enable such uplifting together with said surround In a further aspect the present invention consists in a container formed from a blank wherein said container having a downwardly directed edge or fold-line of an extension is the wall panel hinged from the blank base, the extension being held downwardly over said proximate wall panel by any or more of (I) the surround, and/or (II) an under tucking of an extension beyond said extension fold-line under the blank provided web connected to each of the flanking wall panels.

To those skilled in the art to which the invention relates, many changes in construction and widely differing embodiments and applications of the invention will suggest themselves without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. The disclosures and the descriptions herein are purely illustrative and are not intended to be in any sense limiting.

Figure 1 shows an isometric view of a preferred container in accordance with the present invention showing the feature A to enable uplifting of an end of the container, Figure 2 is an isometric view of one form of surround for association over the container of Figure 1, the surround having flap provided openings to enable into engagement of the flap under the feature A and to enable the uplifting of the surround and the container together, Figure 3 shows the surround of Figure 2 being lowered over the container of Figure 1, Figure 4 shows the arrangement after the lowering of Figure 3, the flaps of the surround being shown in an open condition for convenience (they can of course be adhesively fastened), and Figures 5 through 11 show in sequence the folding of the container, (Figure 5 showing the blank cutout of said container, Figure 6 showing the folding of the walls into an upstanding position, Figure 7 showing the web connections folded to provide the side wall panels of the container, and Figures 8-11 shows the flap extension of said of said container being folded under the web connections to provide said feature), and Figure 12 shows the blank cutout of said surround.

The preferred container is that shown in Figures 1 and 5 through 11. It is preferably formed from a blank of for example, a laminate of a waterproofing plastics material (optionally metallised) and an appropriate paperboard. The paperboard can be a dense card or a laminate of kraft paper and/or other paperboard materials, eg; a corrugated medium or the like.

The present invention envisages however an arrangement whereby a surround formed, for example, from a blank of an appropriate paperboard as shown in Figure 12, can be used to confer an addition to the peripheral wall strength of the assembled container (see Figure 4) whilst allowing the uplifting of the container in such a form.

As can be seen from Figure 5 a preferred single piece blank comprises a base 1 which is preferably rectangular, wall panels 2, flanging walls or wall panels 3, closeable flaps 4 from the flanking walls 3, and outward extension 5 to be folded on a fold-line 6 to provide the downwardly directed feature "A" shown in Figure 1 and to be held in position by the further extension 7 being tied upwardly under the flap 5.

The webs 8 and 9 in each instance are not broken from the wall panels 2 and 3.

The surround itself is preferably formed from the blank shown in Figure 12 (ie; adhered by flap 10. Die cut in panels 12 is a flap providing opening for each end. For convenience the flap is shown out of the plane in Figure 12. This flap 13 is adapted in the condition as shown in Figure 4 to underlie and engage the downwardly directed edge 6 so as to associate the two components together or at least assist in the uplifting of the weight carrying container under the cover of the surround which preferably is provided with the 4 closure flaps depicted in the drawings.

Persons skilled in the art will appreciate how the arrangement as described provides an advantage over the aligned hand hold arrangements of aforementioned New Zealand Patent Specification 230735. At the very least there is provided a better degree of water tightness for the inner container. This is particularly useful where, for example, fish or the like is being carried in what is to be preferably a waterproof crate or tray type environment optionally containing ice and preferably with multiple closures, eg; the flaps of the container itself preferably in turn overlaid by the cover.

The nature of the surround is such as to provide greater strength than would otherwise be the case with the choice of material in the construction of the crate or container component of the assembly.

Outward wall bulge is resisted by the surround and with the preferred use of, for example, a plastic web laminated on to the paperboard, the base of the container or crate is sufficiently strong to support any load carried therein, stacking strength being enhanced by the ability of the base to conform to an underlying assembly in a stack and of course the combined wall strength of both the container and the surround.

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Claims (23)

WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. An assembly comprising or including; a container having a substantially rectangular base and upstanding walls, and a surround for the upstanding walls, wherein two opposed walls of said container have or include a downwardly directed edge or foldline (other than an edge or foldline defined in conjunction with a hand engageable opening) above the base thereof. and wherein said surround provides an opening for or to each said downwardly directed edge or fold-line to enable uplifting of said container with said surround.

2. An assembly of claim 1 wherein said surround is flap closeable at least in part.

3. An assembly of claim 1 or 2 wherein said surround includes flaps to overlie (at least in part) said container.

4. An assembly of any one of the preceding claims wherein said surround is of a planar materials and each said opening of said surround is provided by a flap movable out of the plane of such material.

5. An assembly of claim 4 wherein each said flap is engageable under its proximate said flap downwardly direct edge or foldline.

6. An assembly of any one of the preceding claims wherein said container is formed from a planar material.

7. An assembly of claim 6 wherein said downwardly directed edge or fold-line of is a flap extension of the wall panel hinged from the base, the extension being held downwardly over said wall panel by blank provided web connection(s) to each of the flanking wall panels.

8. An assembly of claim 6 or 7 wherein said planar material of said container is a paperboard including laminate.

9. An assembly of claim 8 wherein said laminate has a corrugated core.

10. An assembly of any one of the preceding claims wherein said surround is of a paperboard laminate.

11. An assembly of claim 10 wherein said surround is bottomless and has closeable flap(s) extending from said flanking wall(s) and said wall panels.

12. An assembly of claim 11 wherein each wall of said surround has a closeable flap.

13. An assembly of any one of the preceding claims wherein said container has closeable flap(s) extending from said flanking wall(s).

14. An assembly of any one of the preceding claims wherein said surround is slightly longer and wider respectively than the corresponding exterior dimensions of said container.

15. An assembly comprising or including; a container having at least a substantially a rectangular base and upstanding walls and a surround for the upstanding walls which does not underlie the base of the container yet which optionally includes one or more flaps capable of overlying part of said container irrespective of whether or not said container itself includes any flap closure aspect, wherein two opposed walls of said container include a flap extension thereof downwardly directed from a fold line from the respective walls to define with a downwardly directed edge or fold line capable of being engaged directly or indirectly to uplift at least in part the container.

16. An assembly of claim 15 wherein the downwardly directed edge or fold line is held in association with the proximate wall panel by blank provided web connection(s) to each of the flanking wall panels of those wall panels having said downwardly directed edge on fold-line.

17. A container formed from a blank of the assembly as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 16 wherein said container has a downwardly directed edge or fold-line of an extension of the wall panel hinged from the blank base, the extension being held downwardly over said proximate wall panel by any one or more of (i) the surround, (ii) an under tucking of an extension beyond said extension fold-line, under the blank provided web connection to each of the flanking wall panels.

18. A container substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one or more of the accompanying drawings.

19. A surround for an assembly of any one of claims 1 to 16 wherein said surround is substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one or more of the accompanying drawings.

20. An assembly substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

21. The use of an assembly in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 16 and 20 to transport or pack or to package articles or produce.

22. An assembly comprising or including; a container (flat closeable or otherwise) having a substantially rectangular base and upstanding wall, and a surround for the upstanding walls, wherein a downwardly directed edge or fold line is provided at two opposed ends of said container by at least one wall for each said downwardly directly edge or fold-line, to allow handling of the said container and wherein said surround provides an opening for each said downwardly edge or fold-line to enable such uplifting together with said surround

23. A container formed from a blank of the assembly as claimed in claim 22 wherein said container having a downwardly directed edge or fold-line of an extension is the wall panel hinged from the blank base, the extension being held downwardly over said proximate wall panel by any or more of (I) the surround, and/or (II) an under tucking of an extension beyond said extension fold-line under the blank provided web connected to each of the flanking wall panels. END OF CLAIMS