US3743163A

US3743163A - Divider partitions for article carriers

Info

Publication number: US3743163A
Application number: US00226001A
Authority: US
Inventors: C Helms
Original assignee: Container Corp
Current assignee: Container Corp
Priority date: 1972-02-14
Filing date: 1972-02-14
Publication date: 1973-07-03
Anticipated expiration: 1990-07-03

Abstract

A divider partition for an article carrier, such as for bottles arranged in a pair of side by side rows, the divider partition being formed from a cut and scored blank to provide fingers extending laterally therefrom, the distal portions of such fingers extending between the bottles and slightly beyond a plane marked by the line of centers of the bottles of a row. The laterally extending fingers are hinged to a central panel of the divider partition along fold lines which are laterally spaced from each other in the central panel and disposed in non-parallel relationship to each other. The longitudinal axis of the fingers extends perpendicularly to such lines of fold, and the fingers extend laterally of the central panel. The laterally extending fingers have auxiliary fold lines therein enabling the fingers to diverge from each other in upward and downward directions, with the distal portions thereof enabled to be tangent to the bottles and to extend between the same, and to lie in vertical planes extending normal to the plane of the central panel.

Description

United States Patent [191 Helms [451 July 3,1973

[ DIVIDER PARTITIONS FOR ARTICLE CARRIERS Charles Robert Helms, Barto, Pa.

[73] Assignee: Container Corporation of America,

Chicago, Ill.

[22] Filed: Feb. 14, 1972 [21] Appl..No.: 226,001

[75] Inventor:

Primary Examiner-Davis T. Moorhead Atr0rneyCarpenter, Otis & Lindberg [57] ABSTRACT A divider partition for an article carrier, such as for bottles arranged in a pair of side by side rows, the divider partition being formed from a cut and scored blank to provide fingers extending laterally therefrom, the distal portions of such fingers extending between the bottles and slightly beyond a plane marked by the line of centers of the bottles of a row. The laterally extending fingers are hinged to a central panel of the divider partition along fold lines which are laterally spaced from each other in the central panel and disposed in non-parallel relationship to each other. The longitudinal axis of the fingers extends perpendicularly to such lines of fold, and the fingers extend laterally of the central panel. The laterally extending fingers have auxiliary fold lines therein enabling the fingers to diverge from each other in upward and downward directions, with the distal portions thereof enabled to be tangent to the bottles and to extend between the same, and to lie in vertical planes extending normal to the plane of the central panel.

6 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures FIG.2

FIGB

DIVIDER PARTITIONS FOR ARTICLE CARRIERS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The invention herein is directed to a divider partition such as may be found in a typical carrier for bottled beer, although it may be employed equally as well in carriers for other beverages.

In the packaging of bottled beer in carriers of the sixpack variety, it is necessary to provide a partition divider between the bottles to protect them. Whatever type is used, it does not merchandise the product any better, and moreover it requires extra equipment to insert the partition divider automatically between the bottles before the application of the wrap.

Those engaged in the packaging of beer or other beverages in glass containers are constantly striving to develop a package furnishing adequate protection with the least possible cost. The saving of even a few square inches of paperboard in the making of a divider partition at times is the difference between a profitable or a non-profitable business. A given design having as an intrinsic part thereof the concept of the employment of a smaller than previously used paperboard blank has a distinct advantage indeed.

2. The Prior Art The invention herein constitutes an improvement over that shown in Helms application Ser. No. 846,661, filed Aug. 1, 1969 for DIVIDER PARTITIONS FOR BOTTLE CARRIERS now US. Pat. No. 3,662,879.

The closest prior art coming to the notice of the applicant are the following patents:

Weiss 3,163,321 Dec. 29, 1964 220/113 Graser 3,258,189 June 28, 1966 229/ Weiss 3,263,893 Aug. 2, 1966 229/15 Graser 3,352,473 Nov. 14, 1967 229/15 Hickin 3,463,354 Aug. 26, 1969 220/115 Schillinger 3,478,947 Nov. 18, 1969 229/15 Helms 3,532,214 Oct. 6, 1970 206/65 Hickin US. Pat. No. 3,463,354 discloses article separating fingers extending laterally from a divider panel, the fingers being foldably connected thereto along the fold lines canted from the vertical. The fingers do not have their longitudinal axes extending perpendicularly to such fold lines. The ends of the fingers, however, do not extend in a plane perpendicular to the panel, and according to the invention herein, provision is made whereby the ends lie in a vertical plane so that the fingers may extend readily between adjacent bottles of a row and tangent thereto.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention herein comprehends a divider partition having fingers extending laterally with elements thereof being in divergent directions, the fingers being formed by cutting and scoring a blank along a plurality of axes spaced from each other, and having distal portions foldable along score lines in said fingers to cause the distal portions to extend at right angles to the plane of the divider and between adjacent bottles and in directions toward the upper and lower edges of a central panel of the divider. The fingers additionally have their longitudinal axes extending substantially at right angles to the lines of fold where the fingers are connected to the partition.

DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a cut and scored paperboard blank for forming a divider partition according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the blank of FIG. 1 in the set up position and separating a group of bottles; and

FIG. 3 is an end view looking in the direction of the arrows 33 of FIG. 2.

The divider partition according to the present invention is shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, and is formed from a cut and scored paperboard blank referred to by the reference numeral 10 and adapted when in the folded and set up condition to provide a divider partition referred to by the reference numeral 10A. Cut and scored blank 10 is comprised of a central panel portion 11 having upper and lower end arms 12 located near the corners thereof. The central panel portion 11, together with the arms 12 is adapted to extend as a partition between two side-by-side rows of containers which contact the central panel portion 11 and the arms 12. The horizontal distance between the arms 12 is approximately equal to the distance between the spaced lines of centers passing through the endmost bottles of containers of the rows of a six-pack having bottles B therein. The central panel portion 11 is tangent also to the center bottles of each row.

The form of the divider partition seen in FIGS. 1 to 3 is especially adapted to separate a so-called stubby type throw-away bottle, but it may also be used with export type bottles.

Central panel portion 11 has transverse partition members extending laterally from said central panel portion, these members including upper intermediate fingers 13 extending laterally, each being defined by essentially

parallel cut lines

14 and 16 and a connecting cut bight or distal end 17. The latter is defined also by intersecting

cut lines

18 and 19, and a curved cut line 21 connecting

cut lines

16 and 19. Cut

lines

14 and 16 are connected at their proximal ends by a score line 22 extending at an angle of less than with respect to the vertical. The so-inclined score lines 22 extend perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis LA of the fingers 13.

Structure is provided whereby the fingers 13 have the distal portions 17 lying in a vertical plane. To this end each of the fingers 13 has a score line 23 extending in a direction which is convergent with the score line 22 intersecting score line 22 where it intersects cut line 16. Score line 22, score line 23 and cut line 14 define a web 24 connecting distal end 17 with panel portion 11.

Cut and scored blank 10 is also provided with laterally extending end fingers 26 defined by the spaced adjacent cut lines 27, by

cut lines

16, 21 and 19 and by cut lines 28 extending in vertical directions from the distal ends 17 of fingers 13. The fingers 26 are additionally defined by horizontal cut lines 29 extending from the ends of cut lines 28. Fingers 26 are connected to central panel portion 11 along a score line 31, and fingers 26 are folded out of the plane of panel portion 11 along the score lines 31 in a direction opposite from the fingers 13. It may be noted that the fingers 26 extend for substantially the full height of the central panel portion 11, the top and bottom extremities thereof lying just below the horizontal plane passing through the upper and lower edges of the central panel portion 11 as previously described.

Additionally, the end finger 26 may be scored along a line 32 to define with score line 34 a tab 33, so that the finger 26 can lie in a plane extending at right angles to the plane of the central panel portion 11.

It will be seen from the foregoing that effective isolation of the bottles from each other is achieved with a minimum of board. Fingers 13, by reason of their mode of attachment to the central panel 11, and by reason of score lines 23, are arranged to extend in a direction so that the distal ends 17 thereof can lie in a vertical plane between a pair of adjacent bottles in a row to one side of the central partition panel 11 as seen more clearly in FIG. 2. As seen in said figure, the distal portions 17 extend in upward and downward directions substantially to planes P passing horizontally through upper and lower edges of panel 11.

I claim:

1. In a divider partition for a group of articles such as bottles arranged in a pair of adjacent rows, wherein said divider partition is formed from a blank having cut and fold lines to provide:

a. a central panel portion separating the articles into two side-by-side rows;

b. transverse partition members extending laterally from said central panel portion for four articles of said group;

i. said transverse partition members extending between two articles of one row and the directly opposite articles of the other row;

ii. said transverse partition members being hinged to the central panel portion and extending outwardly from opposite sides thereof;

0. the improvement wherein at least one of said transverse partition members comprises:

i. members each hingedly connected to said central panel portion along a fold line which is disposed at an angle of less than 90 with respect to a vertical axis passing through said central panel portion;

ii. each of last named members having the longitudinal axis thereof extending substantially at right angles to said fold line;

iii. a score line in each of said members extends in a direction convergent with said fold line so constructed that a distal portion of said member extends in a plane normal to said central panel portion and toward a horizontal plane including an edge of said central panel portion.

2. A divider partition according to claim 1 wherein the other of said transverse partition members is formed from portions of said blank lying between the members comprising the said one transverse partition member.

3. A divider partition according to claim 1 wherein said score line intersects said fold line.

4. A divider partition according to claim 2 wherein said other transverse partition member is generally T- shaped.

5. In a divider partition for a group of articles such as bottles arranged in a pair of adjacent rows, said divider partition being formed from a blank having cut and fold lines to provide:

a. a central panel portion separating the articles into two side-by-side rows;

b. separate transverse partition members extending laterally from said central panel portion for two adjacent articles arranged in a row of said group:

i. said transverse partition members extending between two articles of one row;

ii. said transverse partition members being hinged to the central panel portion and extending laterally thereof;

iii. said transverse partition members being hinged to the central panel portion along non-parallel fold lines;

iv. each of said transverse partition members having the longitudinal axis thereof extending substantially at right angles to its related fold line;

v. each of said transverse partition members having an additional score line therein convergent with its related fold line whereby the distal end of said transverse partition member extends in a vertical plane perpendicular to the plane of the central panel portion.

6. A divider partition according to claim 5 wherein each of said transverse partition members has a portion offset from its longitudinal axis at the distal end thereof.

Claims

1. In a divider partition for a group of articles such as bottles arranged in a pair of adjacent rows, wherein said divider partition is formed from a blank having cut and fold lines to provide: a. a central panel portion separating the articles into two side-by-side rows; b. transverse partition members extending laterally from said central panel portion for four articles of said group; i. said transverse partition members extending between two articles of one row and the directly opposite articles of the other row; ii. said transverse partition members being hinged to the central panel portion and extending outwardly from opposite sides thereof; c. the improvement wherein at least one of said transverse partition members comprises: i. members each hingedly connected to said central panel portion along a fold line which is disposed at an angle of less than 90* with respect to a vertical axis passing through said central panel portion; ii. each of last named members having the longitudinal axis thereof extending substantially at right angles to said fold line; iii. a score line in each of said members extends in a direction convergent with said fold line so constructed that a distal portion of said member extends in a plane normal to said central panel portion and toward a horizontal plane including an edge of said central panel portion.

4. A divider partition according to claim 2 wherein said other transverse partition member is generally T-shaped.

5. In a divider partition for a group of articles such as bottles arranged in a pair of adjacent rows, said divider partition being formed from a blank having cut and fold lines to provide: a. a central panel portion separating the articles into two side-by-side rows; b. separate transverse partition members extending laterally from said central panel portion for two adjacent articles arranged in a row of said group: i. said transverse partition members extending between two articles of one row; ii. said transverse partition members being hinged to the central panel portion and extending laterally thereof; iii. said transverse partition members being hinged to the central panel portion along non-parallel fold lines; iv. each of said transverse partition members having the longitudinal axis thereof extending substantially at right angles to its related fold line; v. each of said transverse partition members having an additional score line therein convergent with its related fold line whereby the distal end of said transverse partition member extends in a vertical plane perpendiCular to the plane of the central panel portion.