US2443810A - Lamp bulb package - Google Patents

Description

June 22, 1948. R. T. WHITE y 2,443,810

LAMP BULB PACKAGE Filed oct. 11. 1946 2 sheets-sheet 1 *u Mimik, K) ,M

INVENTOR. AY 7.` WH/TE bww A T70 PNL-YS June 22, 1948. K y R, T, WH|TE- 2,443,810

` LAMP BULB PACKAGE Filed oct. 11, 194s 2 sheets-sheet 2 `1NVENT0R. IFA Y r WH/TE A TTOP/VEYS Patented June 22, 1948 UNITED PATENT OF F IFCE 1 f 3 ZL'MSLBI'O;n l n i LAMP BULB PACKAGE p Ray T; White,` Rocky River, hio,` aspsignorlto Theflliiawkns Gontainer Company, Cleveland, Ohio, al corporation of Ohio l v 7' Application october i1, 1946, 'serial No. 702,635

This invention relates to an improved protective package for fragile articles andmore particularly to an improvedl carton4 orpackage for the usual type of incandescent electric lamp bulbs.

Various forms of' containersfhavebeen proposed andused for packaging electric lain-p bulbs in` the usual householdsizes and protecting them against, breakage during i transportation `andstorage. Some of these containers-.have beenexcessively bulky, others. have been expensive toI manufacture, somehavenot provided adequate protection for the bulbsand many of them have. not beenparticularly attractive from a merchandising standpoint. x

It is,l therefore,` among the `objects of my in` vention to provide a package of electric light bulbsor the like which adequately protects the; bulbs against breakage during storage and handling, which will permit oneor more `bulbs. to4 be removed from the package and stillk proA teot the remaining bulbs against breakaga; which enablesa larger number of bulbstobe packed in.` the same space than packages. commonly inuse` inthis industry prior to my inventionl and which provides 1an; extremely attractive display cartonl thus facilitatingsales of the-packaged products to the customers.

Other objects oi` my inventionv include:` the provision of a protective package yfor electricl lamp bulbs or theflike which requires. a minimum of materiali; the provision of a package of the type described which permits. ready removal `or replacement of lamp` bulbsafrom or to the enclosing: container; provision of an identifying means which may be left ona lamp bulb when removed from; theenclosing carton;` and the provision of` an electric lam-p bulb` package-Which permits the user to determine at a glance how; many bulbs remainiri thepackage. l l 1 The above and other objects. of my invention? will appear from they following description of' sev-eral embodiments thereof, reference being had tothe accompanying drawingsin which:

Figurel is a perspective -view of an electricf lamp bulb packagefincorporating the features of my present invention, the lid ofthe box or container being partiallyopen y Figure 2 is a plan View `looking into `the open top.` ofA the box. of Figure 1` and. illustrating a. package designed, for yhandling four lamp linulbs` Figure `3is`- a. cross sectional View` taken on line ofu- Figure 2, and illustrating the box or con` tainer With the cover closed.

`or stern portion n 2.a n

' :Figure 4 is a" detachedA perspective Viewof my protective sleeve and'spacer; y

` Figure 5 is a fragmentary cross sectionalview` taken on line 5p-5` of Figure 4 illustrating the' structure of2 the crrugatedipaper board, from; Whichthe protective' sleeves are, made.

Figure. 6` is a vievvj generally similar to Figure 2 but'illustrating a slightly larger size lamp bulb having somewl'iat d'iiierent proportions f rom'the bu1bsofFigu`re2.

The most widely employed'incandescent elece tric lamp bulbs for household and other general" illumination purposes. range "in"size` from about, 25 to 150' watts; Thecompl'ete rangeof wattage sizes,y Within these limits', is incorporated in only a few standardbulb'sizes, eachof which is used for severalfdiierent Wattage ratings. Inthe accompanying drawings I have illustratedv my in; vention in Figures l,` 2, and 3 as adapted' for packaging the smallersize bulbs,"for'examp1e 25 and 5G' watts, While' in Figure 6` I have illustrated' a packagejof larger bulbs', such as the 100 Watt size.`

My paokageconsists"'essentially of. afbox or container`C`,'preferably of rectangular form and` made of? corrugated' paper board or other suitable shock.absorbingmateriaL "The box Cincludes aY top"or eover Iv having a iiap portion 2l adapted to fit within the frontwall 3 when the box clos'ed (see Figure 3). l The bottom 4` of the box is also providedwith an upwardextending ap portion which fits-'against the rear wall 6. p The end Walls 1" and `8 haveiiaps 'If' and 8" 'attheir top andv bottomedgeswhi'chadd to the-rigidity,v of the box structure and provide a. more coinplete and effective enclosure for the contents thereof. f p l Thellength ofthe boa or container C. between the end Vvvallsflfand fdepends uponthe number offlamp lbulbs tobe housedin the package.` In. Figures 1 and Z'a box for four bulbs isillustrated butliit. will be understoodfthat the length of the box could be madeto.: accommodate 2, 3 4,` or.,` more bulbs as` desired- The incividuaibuibs Figure 2. are generallyindicated by reference characters BHQBZ; B3 and B4. Each. bulb com. prises at globe, portionpzanda reduced neck` or stemportion generally indicated at IIL, this neckl l0 also includingthe usual;y threaded basalt. l t l y Before placing the bulbs B1, B2, B3, and B4 inthe container Cv protective spacer sleeves S. are-V slipped over the necks lllV thereof untilthe ends of. thesleeves come to a, stop against the beginningi of the outward bulging globe portions 9 of the bulbs. As is best seen in Figure 4, the sleeves S are made of corrugated paper or paper board having a corrugated inner surface I2 and preferably having a smooth outer cover layer I3. These sleeves S are square in cross section, the length of the sides of the square being such that when a sleeve S is placed on the base II of a lamp bulb the corrugations I2, which extend peripherally of the sleeve, will slip or spring over the threads of the base II and will, due to their engagement with the threads, effectively hold the sleeve S in position on the base of the bulb as indicated in Figure 3. The sleeves S are preferably collapsible into flat form for storage and handling prior to placing on the lamp bulbs and may advantageously be made in accordance with the disclosure of Patent No. 2,084,922 which issued on June 22, 1937, to Melvin H. Sidebotham.

In the package of Figure 2 the four bulbs, each fitted with a sleeve S, are placed in t'he container C in nested, side by side, alternate end for end relation. It will be observed that with each of the bulbs of Figure 2, which are the relatively small size units, the sleeve S extends a substantial distance beyond the outer end of the base II when in position on the bulb. It will also be seen that the width of the box C between the front and rear walls 3 and 6 is substantially equal to the overall length of the bulb plus sleeve units, the outer end of the globe 9 substantially contacting the one. wall and the outer end of the rectangular sleeve S contacting the other wall (see Figure 3). Thus endwise movement of the bulb-sleeve units between the walls 3 and 6 of the container is prevented. Furthermore the globe portions 9 of adjacent bulbs, and particularly the surfaces indicated at 9 thereof, are prevented from impact or engagement with each other which might possibly cause breakage.

The portions 9" of the globe portions 9 of each lamp bulb substantially contact the sleeves S on the adjacent bulbs and thus protective cushions of relatively resilient and shock absorbing material are interposed between the globe portion of each bulb and the neck or base portions of the adjacent bulbs. As is clearly illustrated in Figure 2, the length of the container C between the end walls `I and 8 is lsuch that the outer bulbs B1 and B4 `just fit within the adjacent end walls when the intermediate globe portions 9 and sleeves S are substantially in engagement.

By making the width of the container C between the front and rear walls 3 and 6 equal to the over-all length of a lamp bulb plus its sleeve S, endwise movement of the units is impossible. Also, breakage causing contact between a-djacent bulbs is prevented by making the sleeves S of proper length to give thebulb-sleeve units an overall length suiiicient to maintain a substantial space, as indicated at D in Figure 2, between globe portions 9 of'adjacent bulbs. So likewise, by proportioning the length of the container C between end walls 'l and 8 to just lit the over-alllength of the group of nested bulbs to be contained therein, lateral shifting `of the bulbs is restrained and contact between adjacent bulbs is cushioned by the sleeves S. As the box or container C is also preferably made of corrugated paper board or the like a protective enclosure for the entire group of bulbs is provided.

The outer surfaces of the box C may, of course, be imprinted with suitable identifying and advertising matter and each of the individual sleeves S'may also be so imprinted. When the lid or top l of the box is open, as shown in Figure l, the

bulbs within are attractively displayed, the sleeves S being arranged with their top and bottom surfaces horizontal and their side surfaces vertical, and the entire group of bulbs and sleeves being presented to view in a symmetrical and pleasing manner. When removing bulbs from the container C for use, the first one to be taken out should be one ofthe end bulbs of the group. The same procedure shoul-d be vfollowed in removing additional bulbs, always taking an end bulb from the group so that the remaining bulbs will at all times be prevented from direct contact with each other and the protective features of the package will be preserved.

A popular and effective merchandising display for lampbulbs has been found to result when a rather large number of bulbs, in bulk form, is displayed in a wire basket or the like. When the ordinary bulb is so displayed the identity of the manufacturer is not clearly evident to the observer of the display. However, when bulbs tted with my protective sleeves are so displayed the manufacturers name or trade-mark on the sleeve will readily identify the bulbs to the prospective purchaser. Due to the frictional, interlocking, engagement of the corrugated inner surfaces of the sleeves with the threads on the bases of the bulbs, the sleeves will be retained firmly in position although the sleeves may, of course, be readily slipped off when it is desired to use the bulb.

In Figure 6 I have illustrated a larger size bulb than that shown in Figure 2. Two bulbs B5 and B6 are illustrated in a box or container C', only a portion of which isillustrated. It will be observed that the larger bulbs illustrated in Figure 6 are provided with longer neck portions I4 and I5 than the bulbs of Figure 2. Thus the proportions of the bulbs B5 and l?,s are such that, when the outer end of the threaded base portions I6 and I'I thereof abut the wall I8 of box C' and the outer end of the globe portions I9 and 20 engage the opposite wall 2l, the portions I9 and 20' rof the globes I9 and 20 are well spaced. Therefore it is unnecessary with a bulb of these proportions to extend the sleeves S beyond the outer ends of the threadedbases of the bulbs, as was the case in Figures 2 and 3, and the ends of sleeves S are substantially aligned with the outer ends of the base portions I6 and I'I. In Figure 6 engagement between globe portions and neck portions of adjacent bulbs is cushioned by the sleeves S' in the manner previously described,

Thus, in packaging any size or type of lamp bulb or other article of generally similar shape such as a bottle, by making the length of the sleeves S such that when the sleeves are installed on the bulbs the globe portions of adjacent bulbs will be positively held in spaced relation in the box or container, glass to glass contact is prevented. It will be observed from the above description that my improved package of electric light bulbs is extremely simple. Aside from t'he material used in the box or container C, which is a minimum for the number of bulbs to be packaged due. to the nested relation of the bulbs, only the corrugated board for the small protective sleeves S is required. Both the boxes and the sleeves may be economically manufactured and loading of the bulbs into the packages is extremely easy due to the simplicity of the elements thereof.

Another important advantage of m'y'invention arises from the fact that one size of outer box or container C may be used to package several sizes of bulbs by employing sleeves S of different lengths. Thus in the box illustrated in Figure 2 bulbs of a greater over-all length could be packaged by using sleeves somewhat shorter than those illustrated but which, when installed on the bulbs, would make the over-all length of the bulbs and sleeves equal t the distance between the front wall 3 and rear wall 6 of the box. Substantial savings in the manufacture of the boxes C can thus be eiected by reducing the number of different sizes of boxes which are required to package an entire line of bulb sizes.

Although I have described the illustrated forms of my invention in considerable detail it will be understood that variations and modications may be made in the proportions and arrangement of the elements of my package with-out departing from the spirit of my invention. For example, a two layer package may be made by providing a box or container which is substantially twice as deep as that shown, placing a layer of bulbs on the bottom of the box in the manner illustrated herein, placing a sheet of corrugated paper or the like on top of the lower layer of bulbs, and then placing a top layer of bulbs on the spacer sheet. I do not, therefore, wish to be limited to the particular form and arrangement of parts herein shown and described but claim as my invention all embodiments thereof coming Within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A package of electric light bulbs or the like comprising a generally rectangular corrugated paper board box having a cover adapted t0 be opened and closed, and a plurality of electric lamp bulbs disposed in said box in side by side alternate end for end nested relation, each of said bulbs having a corrugated paper sleeve disposed around the neck thereof, said sleeves being substantially square in cross section and snugly fitting the sleeve portions of said bulbs and abutting the globe portions thereof.

2. A package including a box of corrugated paper board or the like, a plurality of electric light bulbs disposed in side by side alternate end for end relation in said box, said bulbs having globe portions and reduced neck portions, and corrugated paper protective sleeves of generally rectangular cross-section positioned on the necks of each of said bulbs, the globe portion of each bulb substantially contacting the sleeves on its adjacent bulbs, each bulb being held against substantial endwise movement by engagement of the globe with one side of the box and the sleeve with the opposite side of the box, said engagement with opposite sides of the box also maintaining the globe portions of adjacent bulbs out of contact.

3. A package of electric light bulbs or the like comprising two or more bulbs disposed in nested relation on the bottom of a box, each bulb having a corrugated paper sleeve of generally square cross-section tting snugly around its neck portion and abutting its globe portion, each bulb with its sleeve having an overall length substantially equal to the width of said box whereby endwise movement of the bulbs and contact between the globe portions of adjacent bulbs is prevented, said sleeves preventing direct contact and providing cushions between the globe portions and neck portions of adjacent bulbs.

4. A package of the type described including a generally rectangular box having a cover portion forming the top of the box when closed, a plurality of electric light bulbs disposed therein, each of said bulbs having a globe portion and a neck portion, said bulbs being nested side by side in said box with adjacent bulbs reversed end for end, and means for restricting movement of said bulbs in said box and maintaining them out of breakage causing contact with each other comprising sleeves of rectangular cross-section frictionally retained on said neck portions of said bulbs, the length of said sleeves being correlated to the width of said box to maintain the globe portions of any two adjacent bulbs out of engagement with each other when said globe portions of said two adjacent bulbs are in contact with the sleeves on the necks of said two adjacent bulbs.

RAY T. WHITE.

REFERENCE S CITED FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date France July 21, 1930 Number Certificate of Correction Patent No. 2,443,810 June 22, 1948 RAY T. WHITE It is hereby certified that the name of the assignee in the above numbered patent was erroneously described and specied as The Hawkins Container Company Whereas said name should have been described and specified as The Hanlcfins Container Company; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Oice.

Signed and sealed this 21st day of February, A. D. 1950.

THOMAS F. MURPHY,

Assistant Commissioner of Patents.

Images