US2381543A

US2381543A - Carton partition means

Info

Publication number: US2381543A
Application number: US519769A
Authority: US
Inventors: William H Inman
Original assignee: BLOOMER BROS CO
Current assignee: BLOOMER BROS Co
Priority date: 1944-01-26
Filing date: 1944-01-26
Publication date: 1945-08-07
Anticipated expiration: 1962-08-07

Description

Aug. 7, 1945. l w. H. INMAN V CART-0N PARTITION MEANS Filed Jan. 26, 1944 s sheets-sheet 1 INVENTOR. y,

w. H. INMAN 2,381,543

CARTON PARTITION MEANS Aug. 7, 1945.

Filed Jan. 26, 1944 l 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 /w4fw4 f y@ @y QQ @35 L J` INENTOR.

llg 7, 1945. w. H. INMAN CARTON PARTITION MEANS 3 sheets-sheet' s Filed Jan. 26, 1944 A I IIs/VENTOR.l

mma Aug. 7, 194s.

oAa'roN PARTITION MEANS William H. Inman,

Bloomer Bros. Company,

. poration of New York Application JanuaryZG, 1944, Serial No. 519,769

8 Claims.

This invention relates to carton partition means. or fillers," for separating a carton into a plurality ofcompartments, or cells, for receiving articles to be separately contained, such, for example, as eggs, fruit, -or other articles of food, articles of fragile construction, and the like, one object of the invention being to provide an improved device of the above character having a more simple, inexpensive and efiicient construction.

.Another object is to provide such a device made from a. one-piece blankl of material capable of being easily and quickly erectedin condition for insertion in the carton to be partitioned.

Another object is to provide a device of the character described capable of being readily erected and rigidly secured in erected position.

Another object isto provide a filler having a lone-piece construction which is efficient in `use and capable of manufactured. Y A further object is the provision of such a partition device adapted-to be stored and transported as a one-piece, fiat sheet lof material, or in partly folded, compactly collapsed and substantially flat condition, ready for erection and use.'

Still a further object is to afford a one-piece, folding iiller capable of being repeatedly secured being readily and economically in erected position, and collapsed vand erected again, for repeated use, or as conditions may .require. To these and other ends the invention resides in certain improvements and combinations of parts, all as will be hereinafter more fully de` scribed, the novel features being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a cardboard blank, cut and scored, ready for folding into erected position, in accordance with the. present invention;

Fig. 2 is va plan view lof the blank of Fig 1, partly folded and in compactly collapsed, substantially flat condition for storage and transportation;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary view of parts shown in Fig. 1, for clearer illustration; I

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary plan view showing the side wall portions folded upwardly in course of erection;

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the parts as shown inFig. 4; I

Fig. 6 is a fragmentaryv plan lview showing a further step in the erection of the device;

ythe opposite margins of the Newark, N.l y., signor to Newark, N. Y., a cor- Fig, 7 is a side elevation of the parts as shown in Fig. 6:

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the device after erection, ready for insertion in a carton indicated in dotted lines;

Fig.r 9 is a side right in Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary side elevation as viewed from the bottom in Fig. 8;

Fig. 11 is an enlarged, sectional plan on the line l|a-IlainFig. 10; f

Fig 12 is an enlarged view similar to Fig. 9, but with the side walls folded angularly inward;

Fig. 13 is an enlarged, perspective view of the parts as viewed from the left and below in Fig. 11,

elevation as viewed from the and Fig. 14 is a side elevation of the blank folded forcollapsing, substantially as shown in Fig. 2,.

The invention is herein disclosed, by way of illustration, as embodied in a form particularly adapted for partitioning a 3 x 4 egg carton, t0 provide the egg receiving cells, comprising various improvements on United States Patent No. 2,140,001, granted December 13, 1938, to Michael Davitt, for a Box divider.

Referring more particularly to the drawings. the present embodiment of the invention comprises a one-piece blank 20,-Fig. 1, of cardboard. or like material, suitable for folding to form an egg carton "filler, the blank being formed with two longitudinal fold lines, indicated generally at 2l and 22, spaced from each other and from blank, to divide it substantially into longitudinalfthirds, including opposite

side wall portions

23 and 24 and a bottom portion 25. Each of the score lines, 2| and 22, comprises portions, as 2B, which are scored, Y

or otherwise weakened, to facilitate folding, as well understood in the art, and also other por-,- tions, 21, at which the material of the blank is cut completely through, or slitted. Certain of the cut parts 21 coincide with the longitudinal fold lines 26, while at other spaced parts the cuts extend or curve outwardly, as at 2l, into the spaces intermediate the longitudinalfold lines 20 and the opposite margins of the blank, as shown, and for a purpose to be presently described. In Ithe present instance, the outwardly curved cuts 28 are arranged in pairs and there are three sp'aced pairs in the length of the blank.

The blank is also formed at each of the cuts 28 with transversely extending -

fold lines

29, 30 and 3|, formed partly by lines of scoring or weakening, and partly by cuts extending through the material. The lines, 29 and-2l, are located at and 22, between the cuts 28. These side wall portions are alike in construction so that a description of one applies to both.

. It will be seen from the above constructionthat the side wall portions, 23 and 24, may be folded ,upwardly about the lines 2| and 22 to a vertical position, as shown in Fig. Las a preliminary step,Y

in the erection of the illler. This is conveniently accomplished by the ngers of one hand at each end of the blank, after which inward pressure at the ends of the blank cause the pairs of

side wall portions

23a and 23h and 24a and 24h to buckle outwardly and the bottom portions 25a and 25h to buckle upwardly, as shown in Fig. 6, the pressure being continued until the parts assume the position shown in Fig. 8. It will be noted that the outwardly curved cuts 28 separating these parts provide extended end portions on the parts 25a and 25h which are enclosed between and supported by the outwardly buckled side wall portions, thus rigidly supporting the upwardly buckled bottom portions 25a and 25h in vertical position.

Means are provided for securely holding the outwardly buckled side wall portions in the erected position shown in Fig. 8, in which they also support the vertically buckled bottom portions, such means comprising, preferably, hinged ears 34, produced by cuts formed Aalong the fold lines 3|, so that, in folding, the ears separate from the side walls 32 and remain in the plane of the out-v wardly buckled portions 23h and 2lb. Adjacent the base of the ears, the blank material is cut by a transverse slit 35 and by spaced, oppositely curved cuts 36, to form pairs of opposing hinged ears 3l'. For engagement between these ears 3l,

'the transverse lines 29 include cuts forming tongues 38 lying in the plane of adjacent side wall portions 32, so that as the parts are moved to the erected position described above, tongues 38 are forced through the corresponding slits 35 between the pairs of ears 3l. The inserted thickness of the tongues .38 forces the ears to an inclined position, as best shown in Fig. 13, so that a pull tendingy to withdraw the tongues tends to wedge the-m more tightly between the ears 21 and thus oppose a substantial frictional resistance acting to securely hold the parts in engagement with each other, but permitting withdrawal of the tongues by a sulcient outward pull on the ends of the blank.

To prevent interference between the ends of the upwardly Ibuckled bottom portions 25a and 25h and the tongues 38, such bottom portions are formed with registering circular openings 39, through which the tongues freely pass for engagement with the hinged ears 31, as described above. The openings 39 are preferably made of suiiicient diameter for clearing the tongues 38 in the vertical position normally occupied by the side wall portions in which the outwardly buckled portions have their lower outer ends 40 alined withy the bottom 25 and both resting on the bottom of the carton to be partitioned. In erecting the device, however, it may be convenient toraise the side wall portions to an inwardly inclinedA position as shown in Fig. 12, in which they may even engage each other'at their top edges,` and the openings 33 are made large enough to clear the tongues 38 in this position also, so that the tongues are left free for engagement with the ears in any position to which the side walls may be raised during erection. f

In the manufacture o! the device, the blank may be merely cut and scored, as described, after which it may be readily bent about its fold lines, but it is preferred to initially bend the material .by any suitable erecting machine or form, about the transverse score lines, so that the side wall portions are biased for buckling outwardly and the bottom portions'for buckling upwardly, to facilitate both the compact collapsing of the blank for storage and transportation, as shown in Figs. 2 and 14, and also the erection oi' the device for use.

'I'he device may be quickly and easily erected by grasping and pulling its ends in opposite direction to first bring the parts to the position shown in Fig. 1 after which the side walls are folded upwardly, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. An inward push on the blank ends then causes the side wall portions to buckle outwardly and the bottom portions to buckle upwardly and, as the parts are moved to the fully erected position shown in Fig. 8, the ends of the upwardly buckled bottom portions are engaged and supported be- I tween the outwardly buckled side wall portions,

and tongues 38 engage between ears 3l' and securely hold the parts in erected position, from which the blank may be again collapsed, however, if desired, by an outward pull on the ends of the blank and return of the parts to the position shown in either Fig. l, or Figs. 2 and 14.

'I'he invention thus provides a one-piece iiller device, which is readilyl and economically manufactured, conveniently disposed for storage and transportation and quickly and easily erected for use, with means for securely but releasably re- `taining it in erected position ready for insertion in a carton.

It will thus be seen that the invention accomplishes its objects, and while it has been herein disclosed by reference to the details of one particular embodiment, it will be understood that such disclosure is intended in an illustrative rather than a limiting sense, as it is contemplated that various modifications and changes in the construction and arrangement of the parts will readily occur to those skilled in the art, within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A carton partition device comprising a blank formed With longitudinal fold lines spaced from each other and from opposite margins of said blank to` provide two side portions and an intermediate bottom portion, said blank having cuts vtherethrough at spaced parts of said fold lines and beingformed also with transverse fold lines at the ends and intermediate portions of said cuts to `provide opposite side portions adapted to buckle outwardly and bottom portions adapted to buckle upwardly, and cooperating elements on said buckling side and bottom portions arranged for engagement with each other by the erection of said blank, to hold said portions in buckled, cell-forming position.

2. A carbon partition device comprising a blank formed with longitudinal fold lines spaced from each other and from opposite margins of said blank to provide two side portions and an intermediate/bottom portion, said blank having cuts therethrough at spaced parts of said fold lines and being formed also with transverse fold lines at the ends and intermediate portions of said cuts respectively,

to provide opposite side portions adapted to buckle outwardly and bottom portions adapted to buckle upwardly, and tongues projecting from and alined with said side portions, side portions having slots formed therein to receive and retain said tongues, respectively, to hold said portions in buckled, cell-forming position.

3. A carton partition device comprising a blank formed with longitudinal fold lines spaced from each other and from opposite margins of said l,blank to provide two side walls and an intermediate bottom, said blank being cut through at spaced parts of said fold lines by cuts extending outwardly intermediate said longitudinal fold lines and said formed also at each of said cuts with transversely extending fold lines, the portions of said side walls between said transverse fold lines being buckled outwardly and the portions of said bottom between said transverse fold lines being buckled upwardly and having their ends provided with openings therethrough and enclosed between said outwardly buckled side wall portions, and coopverating elements on opposite sides of said side wall portions for engagement with each other through said end openings for holding said buckled portions in cell-forming position and limiting outward movement of said side walls.

4. A carton partition device comprising a blank formed with longitudinal fold lines spaced from each other and from opposite margins of said blank to provide two side walls and an intermediate bottom, said blank being cut through at spaced parts of said fold lines by cuts extending outwardly intermediate said longitudinal fold lines and said margins and said blank being formed also at each of said cuts with transversely extending fold lines, the portions of said side walls between said transverse fold lines being buckled outwardly and the portions of said bottom between said transverse fold .lines being buckled upwardly, and having their ends enclosed between said outwardly buckled side wall portions. and cooperating elements at opposite sides of said outwardly buckled side wall portions for engagement with each other'l to hold said buckled portions in cellforming position.

5. A carton partition device comprising a blank spaced from diate bottom, V d spaced parts of said fold lines by .cuts extending outwardly intermediate said longitudinal told lines and said margins and said blank being formed also at each of said cuts with transversely extending foldlines. the portions of said sidewalls between sad transverse fold lines buckled outwardly and the portions of said bottom between said transverse ioldlines being buckled upwardly and having their ends enclosed between said outwardly buckled side portions, and tongues projecting from and alined with said side walls, said outwardly buckled portions oi said side walls having slots formed therein to receive and retain said tongues, u

said outwardly buckling margins and -said blank being from opposite margins of said o transversely extending fold projecting through said openings to hold said portions in buckled, cell-forming position.

6. A carton partition device comprising a blank formed with longitudinal fold lines spaced from each other and from'opposite margins of said blank to provide two side walls and an intermediate bottom, said blank being cut through at spaced parts of said outwardly intermediate said longitudinal fold lines and said margins and said blank being formed also at each of 'said cuts with transversely extending fold lines, the portions of said side walls between said transverse fold lines being buckled outwardly and the portionsof said bottom between said transverse fold lines being buckled upwardly and having ltheir ends provided with openings therethrough and enclosed between said outwardly buckled side wall portions, said outwardly buckled side wall portions having slots formed therein, and tongues on said side walls and interlocked with said slots, to hold said buckled portions in cell-forming position.

'1. A carton partition device comprising a one- `piece blank formed with longitudinal fold lines spaced from each other and from opposite margins of said blank to provide opposite side walls and an intermediate bottom, said blank being cut through at spaced parts of said fold lines by cuts separating said side walls and bottom, and said blank being formed also at each of said cuts with lines, the portions of said side walls between said transverse lines being buckled outwardly andthe portions of said bottom between said transverse fold lines being buckled upwardly to form article receiving cells, hinged said outwardly buckled side wall portions pair separated by a cut, and tongues formed on said side walls for releasable engagement between said ears to hold said outwardly buckled portions in cell-forming position.

8. A carton partition device comprising a onepiece blank `formed with longitudinal fold lines' spaced from each other and from opposite margins of said blank to provide opposite side walls and an intermediate bottom, said blank being cut through at spaced parts of said fold lines by cuts lextending outwardly intermediate said longitudinal fold lines and said margins, and said blank being formed also at the ends and center of each of said cuts with'transversely extending fold lines, the portions of said side walls at each cut between said transverse lines being buckled outwardly and the corresponding portions of said bottom being buckled upwardly and having their ends provided with openings therethrough and enclosed and' supported between said loutwardly buckled side wall portions, hinged ears formed in pairs by cuts in said outwardly buckled portions with lthe ears ot each pair separated by a cut, and tongues on said side walls projecting through said openings and Irictionally engaged between said ears to hold said buckled portions in cell-forming position. c

WILLIAM E. INMAN.

fold lines by cuts extending