US1936395A - Packaging soap - Google Patents

Description

Patented Nov. 21, 1933 UNITED STATES VPACKAGING SOAP John C. Ingram, Chicago, Ill., assigner to Armour and Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application July 18, 1931. Serial No. 551,699 6 claims. (c1. 2 6.-46)

My invention relates to the commercial packaging of articles usually sold in multiple units in cake or bar form. The invention is particularly adapted to commodities of which soap is typical and is herein used as an exemplication.

The purchaser of toilet soaps, for example, is influenced in his selection by the appearance and odor. Cellophane is coming to be popularly used as a wrapper for goods of various sorts by reason of its transparency, but it usually completely encloses the article and, if applied to soap, it precludes olfactory tests. Moreover to wrap completely articles of considerable bulk as related to price inflicts an undue percentage of cost, and this is pertinent to the marketing of the less expensive brands of soap as displayed for sale in chain stores and the like.

For instance, where three cakes oi soap are retailed for ten cents, it is obvious that the cost of .20 collectively packaging the three units must be kept at a minimum by the manufacturer, as the permissible prent divided between the manufacturer, the jobber and the merchant is very small. lt is therefore important that the amountl of wrapper material used and the labor involved in wrapping be reduced so far as is possible, consistent with efficient and attractivepackaging.

By my inventon I employ less than half the amount of material necessary to completely wrap, yet bind the units securely together and at the same time attain the advantage, over a completely wrapped article, that the customer may judge the articles both by sight and smell.

It will be obvious that there are many articles other than scented soaps to 'which the invention is applicable; wherefore soaps are to be understood merely as illustrative of its field of usefulness.

In the drawing,

Fig. l represents a commercial package oi soap ioluding three units;

Fig. 2 is a medial section through the longer dimension of the package; and

Fig. 3 is a similar section at right angles to Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawing, it will be observed that the outer soap cakes A have their faces formed in relief or convex as indicated at A1, while the interi iediate soap calze B has its faces formed in intaglio or concave as indicated at B1; whereby when they are arranged as illustrated the convex faces seat within the concave faces, thus becoming nested and secured against lateral shifting so long as they are prevented from separating.

vIt will be understood that this nesting relationship and consequent security against lateral shifting' may be attained as between two cakes having the convex and concave relationship between their adjacent aces; as would be the case if either of the cakes A were omitted from the package. It is also obvious that the cakes A and B might be identical, each having a concave and a convex face, so long as the adjacent faces are one concave and the other convex.

Disassociation of the nested cakes is prevented by binding them against separation in a direction normal to the general plane of their faces, whereby the interlocking of ltheir faces against lateral shifting is rendered effective; and the employment of a binding wrapper of transparent material such as cellophane, whether in strip or sheet form, serves also to render the product visible even though completely enveloped without the edges or ends being directly exposed. Thus the purposes of the invention are largely served in the attainment of a secure assembly of soap cake units of similar or variant color subject to visual inspection.

By reason of the nested relationship of the soap cakes it is unnecessary that the wrapper envelope the units on all sides lto prevent disassociation. It is only necessary that a strip of material enclose the faces and two edges of the assembly, the ends of the strip being united so as to exert a binding action to prevent separation or" .the cakes. The strip is preferably plain or uncoated, that is to say not gummed for adherence to the cakes, as lateral shifting of intermediate cakes is prevented by the nested relationship when the cakes are held together by the strip.

By employing a cellophane strip to bind the cakes together in the manner illustrated, however the whole of the article is exposed to view, the faces and two edges through the binding strip and the other two edges directly. The leaving of the two edges, here shown as the ends, eX- posed has the additional advantage that the prospective purchaser is enabled to determine the scent employed, this latter being an important consideration in the selection of toilet soaps.

It will thus be appreciated that there is a substantial saving in the costof material and of labor which would be involved if the package were completely wrappeda saving which amounts to between 5% and 10% of the retail price of the goods and consequently a very much larger percentage of saving as measured by the profit to the manufacturer. Moreover, the packaging of soap in this manner possesses decided advantages over the up marketing of disassociated units or the collective packaging of multiple units in the ordinary enveloping wrapper.

I claim:

1. A soap package comprising a plurality of nested unwrapped cakes, the adjacent faces of which are respectively convex and concave` and an uncoated binding strip enveloping the outer faces and two edges, leaving the other two edges exposed. A

2. A soap package comprising a plurality of nested unwrapped cakes, the adjacent faces of which are respectively convex and concave, and a binding strip of transparent material enveloping the outer faces and two edges, leaving the other two edges exposed.

3. A soap package comprising a plurality of nested unwrapped cakes, theadjacent faces of which are respectively convex and concave, and a binding strip of cellophane enveloping the outer faces and two edges, leaving the other two edges y exposed.

' and nested'to prevent lateral shifting, and a binding strip encirclingr the assembly to prevent separation, the binding strip being of transparent 'material vand leaving two edges of the contents exposed.

6. A commercial package comprising a group of individually unwrapped units having adjacent faces of vlaterally interlocking configuration, and a transparent non-adherent binder for the group extending about the same to secure the group of units together against separation in a direction normal to the general plane of their interlocking faces.

' JOHN C. INGRAM.

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