WO1997018131A1

WO1997018131A1 - Method and device for indicating a tampered packaged product

Info

Publication number: WO1997018131A1
Application number: PCT/AU1996/000727
Authority: WO
Inventors: David Leonard Buckley
Original assignee: David Leonard Buckley
Priority date: 1995-11-14
Filing date: 1996-11-14
Publication date: 1997-05-22

Abstract

A package assembly (1) including: a package body (3), a closure (2) for the package body, and tamper indication means (9) moveable from an unobtrusive position to an obtrusive position during an initial opening of the package assembly.

Description

"METHOD AND DEVICE FOR INDICATING A TAMPERED PACKAGED PRODUCT"

FIELD OF INVENTION This invention relates to product packaging, wholesale and retail activities and quality control systems for preventing and identifying tampering of packaged products.

PRIOR ART Packaged products such as prepared and processed food and pharmaceuticals often have some means for preventing unauthorised handling or tampering with the product. Accompanying the means for preventing tampering is often a warning indicating that if there is evidence of tampering such as, for example, a broken seal, the product should not be used.

There is currently a number of different means for preventing tampering with a packaged product. These include the placement of a seal to prevent the opening of a cardboard box package which for example is used with the packaging of some pharmaceutical products. Also glass containers which contain a preparation of baby food have pop-up lids which upon opening and the release of the vacuum, pop-up, thereby indicating the container has been opened. As well shrinkable plastic wrap around the neck and lid of a container has been used to prevent the opening of the container. For plastic milk containers a collar associated with a cap and releasably engaged with the container has been used where the separation of the cap from the collar indicates the container has been opened.

The use of means to prevent tampering has resulted from a need to protect the consumer from accidental or deliberate contamination with harmful substances or microbes and improve quality control by providing a safe product.

The conventional approach has been on developing means to prevent accidental or deliberate opening of a packaged product. Current devices for preventing tampering of packaged products, as illustrated above, have a number of problems. These problems include the fact that most devices are not failsafe and that a tampered packaged product may go unnoticed during supply to a customer.

It may be possible to open a cardboard box package and close it again while giving the appearance that the seal has not been interfered with. Similarly, it is possibly to remove the cap of a plastic milk container with the collar and return the cap to its former position without providing any indication that there has been tampering. Further, most tamper prevention devices do not readily alert a check-out operator processing large quantities of goods to the fact a product has been tampered with.

The present invention aims to alleviate at least one of the abovementioned disadvantages and to provide product packaging, wholesale and retail activities and quality control systems for preventing and identifying tampering of packaged products.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention in one aspect resides broadly in a method of packaging, including:- providing packaging having dispatch details thereon required to be noted by a salesperson at point of sale; providing obstructing means on the packaging capable of altering or obstructing the dispatch details, at least to the extent that the salesperson can not note the required dispatch details without being alerted, and arranging the obstructing means to obstruct the dispatch details upon opening or attempts to open the packaging. The dispatch details may be of the type that are visually noted, such as a price, or they may be in the form which is machine readable, such as a bar code.

The obstructing means may disrupt the dispatch details in any suitable manner such as by tearing, deforming, displacing or obscuring such they can not be readily noted. Alternatively the obstructing means may alter the bar code reading to provide a machine indication of tampering. In a further aspect this invention provides a package assembly including:- a package body; a closure for the package body, and tamper indication means moveable from an unobtrusive position to an obtrusive position during an initial opening of the package assembly.

Preferably the tamper indication means in the obtrusive position disables or obstructs the price or price code in such manner that normal processing at the point of sale is interrupted to provided an alert.

Alternatively, the tamper indication means may, when moved to the obtrusive position, exposes tamper indication means such as a visual and/or aural warning. Preferably the tamper indication means is prevented from movement from the obtrusive position to the unobtrusive position. If desired the closure and the tamper indication means may be integral. Preferably however the closure and the tamper indication means are separate and are both selectively moveable relative to one another and to the package body. The package assembly may be a container closed by a cap or lid with the tamper indication means mounted on the container and cooperating with its lid for movement thereby to the obtrusive position. In one embodiment the tamper indication means includes a collar mounted around the neck of a container in a recess below its securing thread and adapted to be driven around the recess to a captive obtrusive position by the screw-off a cap for the container. The collar may completely or partially surround the neck and support a protrusion which obstructs the identification of the price or the price code when disposed in its obtrusive position. Alternatively, the collar may be associated with an arm that is moved to an obstructing position upon opening of the lid. The arm or protrusion may completely or partially cover the price or the price code when in the obtrusive position.

The collar preferably moves from an unobtrusive position to an obtrusive position during the initial opening of the cap. For this purpose it is preferred that complementary engagement features are provided which mate in the factory closed position and which separate after the initial opening so that initial opening moves the collar to its captive obtrusive position. Preferably the complementary engagement features are unable to cooperate in a manner which returns the collar to its unobtrusive position during resealing of the cap. The collar may be held captive in its obtrusive position by suitably positioned lugs which move into complementary recesses on the container.

In an alternative embodiment the tamper indication means includes an extension member which extends from a compressed unobtrusive position to an expanded obtrusive position. The expansion member is preferably placed adjacent or over an opening formed by the body portion and the closure portion. There is also a seal preferably placed over the expansion member maintaining the expansion member in the unobtrusive position. The seal is also preferably placed over the opening. There is also a price or price code preferably positioned over the expansion member when it is in the unobtrusive position. The seal and price or price code may completely or only partially cover the expansion member. The expansion member may be in the form of a concertina flap. The expansion member in the obstructive position may include a warning label containing words or symbols and/or be of a distinctive colour.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Three preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a diagrammatic representation of the first embodiment of the present invention with a collar and activating arm;

FIGURE 2 is a diagrammatic representation of the second embodiment of the present invention which has a collar and shield;

FIGURE 3 is a diagrammatic representation of the third embodiment of the present invention which has a concertina flap.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment

With reference to Fig. 1.1 there is shown a container assembly 1 having a cap 2, a container body 3, neck 4 of the container body 3, and a collar 5 surrounding the neck 4. The collar 5 has a peripherally extending flexible arm 9 pivotally mounted thereon which normally obstructs a warning label 6. This label 6 is revealed when an arm 9 is pivoted downwardly upon opening the cap 2. A barcode 8 is provided on the container body 3. An actuating lug 7 is formed in the body 3 in the path of movement of the shoulder portion 9a of the arm 9 such that rotation of the collar 5 brings the shoulder 9a into contact with the lug 7 causing downward pivotal movement of the arm 9 to an obstructing position across the label 8.

As shown in Fig. 1.3 rotation of the collar 5 results upon removal of the cap 2 through the ramped projection 10 on cap 2 which is engaged with a corresponding recess 11 in the collar 5 causing corresponding rotation of the collar 5. The collar rotates until the arm 9 moves to the operative position extending downward from the opening of the container 1 across the label 8. Fig. 1.5 shows the container body 3 without the cap 2. The body 3 has projecting threads 12 for securing the cap 2 which spiral upwards towards the container opening and a further projection 13 which is parallel with the container opening. The neck 4 also has recesses 14 and 15 into which locating lugs 16 and 17 on the collar 5 are positioned during assembly of the collar 5 on the container body 3.

A locking recess 18 is provided for retention of the lug 17 when the collar 5 is positioned in the obstructing position.

In use, during initial opening of the container assembly 1, the cap 2 urges collar 5, by the engagement of projection 10 with recess 11, in an anticlockwise direction. When the shoulder 9a contacts the activating lug 7 the arm 9 pivots about the lug 7 and extends downwardly across the barcode 8 interfering with the readability of the barcode 8 and thus alerting the sales person to the changed condition of the container assembly 1. Once the arm has moved to its obstructing position it is prevented from further movement in any direction as the lug 17 is held captive in recess 18 which has a ramped entry which provides an abutment against return movement. Second Embodiment The container 31 illustrated in Fig. 2 has a neck 32 and body 33. The neck 32 has a collar locating slot 34 which is in L-shaped. A peripherally extending non- return bevel 35 having an upwardly inclined face 36 proximal to the opening 37 and a lower flat surface 38 is positioned on the neck 32. The bevel 35 also has a non-return lug 39 extending down from the lower flat surface 38. The neck 32 is threaded at 40 for fitting a cap. The thread 40 and the bevel 35 are further shown in Fig. 2.2. The body 33 has a warning 41, a barcode 42 and a price 43.

As illustrated in Fig. 2.3 a collar 45 with a protrusion in the form of a shield 46 is positioned about the neck below the lower flat surface 38. The collar 45 also has a locking projection 47 and an activating projection 48 which cooperates with a cap activating projection 49. The collar 45 is illustrated in the unobtrusive position in Fig. 2.3. That is the cap 44 has not been initially opened.

In contrast, the collar 45 is in the obtrusive position and the cap 44 has been opened in Fig. 2.4. Fig. 2.6 shows a plan view of the collar 45 and shield 46 with locating lugs 50.

In use the collar 45 is located in the unobtrusive position on the container 31 with the placement of the locating lugs 50 in the slots 34. When the cap 44 is initially moved towards opening, the projection 39 cooperatively engages with the corresponding projection 48 on the collar 45 and urges the collar 45 to move in the same direction (ie. anticlockwise). The ramped projection 48 thus passes through slot 34 and slides beneath bevel 35. The projection 48 may be compressed during the sliding, however the projection 48 as shown in Fig. 2.5 is resiliently deformable. The lugs 50 abut the end of the slot 34 and prevent the collar 45 from further movement in an anticlockwise direction. As well the ramped non-return lug 39 prevents the collar 45 from moving in a clockwise direction because of the engagement of its vertical face with the vertical face of the projection 47 when the collar 45 has moved from an unobtrusive position to an obtrusive position. The shield 46 correspondingly moves to conceal the price 43 and the barcode 42 and expose the warning 41. The cap 44 may be removed or fitted to the container 31 without interference from the collar 45. The internal lugs 50 on the collar force the collar 45 into an elliptical shape during the anticlockwise movement to the obtrusive position. The bevel 35 is also deformed to elliptical in shape and oriented with its major axis at 90 degrees with respect to the ellipse formed by the collar 45 in the obtrusive position. This further prevents the collar 45 from being removed. (See Fig. 2.7. )

Third Embodiment

With reference to Fig.s 3.1 and 3.2 there is shown a cardboard box 61 having a lid 62 hinged to a base 63. There is also shown seals 64, a barcode 65 and a expandable concertina flap 66. The flap 66 in a compressed unobtrusive position is shown in fig 3.1 whereas the flap 66 in an expanded obtrusive position is shown in fig 3.2. There is also an opening 67 formed between the lid 62 and the base 63. The seal 64 is attached to the lid 62 and the base 63, and overlaps the opening 67 and the flap 66. The barcode 65 overlaps the flap 66. When the seal 64 is broken, the flap 66 expands and separates elements of the barcode 65 preventing it from being readable and preventing the sale of the package 61. It will of course be realised that while the foregoing has been given by way of illustrative example of this invention, all such and other modifications and variations thereto as would be apparent to persons skilled in the art are deemed to fall within the broad scope and ambit of this invention as is defined in the appended claims.

Claims

THE CLAIMS DEFINING THE INVENTION ARE AS FOLLOWS:-

1. A method of packaging, including:- providing packaging having dispatch details thereon required to be noted by a salesperson at the point of sale; providing obstructing means on the packaging capable of altering or obstructing the dispatch details, and arranging the obstructing means to obstruct the dispatch details upon opening or partial opening of the packaging.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the dispatch details are of the type that are visually noted and the obstructing means are moved to an obstructing position over the dispatch details upon opening or partial opening of the packaging.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the dispatch details are of the type that are machine readable and the obstructing means disable the machine readable dispatch details upon opening or partial opening of the packaging.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the dispatch details are of the type that are machine readable and the obstructing means alters the machine reading of the dispatch details upon opening or partial opening of the packaging.

5. A package assembly including:- a package body; a closure for the package body, and tamper indication means moveable from an unobtrusive position to an obtrusive position during an initial opening of the package assembly.

6. A package assembly as claimed in claim 5, wherein the tamper indication means in the obtrusive position disables or obstructs the price or price code.

7. A package assembly as claimed in claim 5 or claim 6, wherein the tamper indication means is prevented from movement from the obtrusive position to the unobtrusive position.

8. A package assembly as claimed in any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein the package assembly is a container closed by a screw-on cap or and the tamper indication means is mounted on the container and cooperates with the cap for movement thereby to the obtrusive position.

9. A package assembly as claimed in claim 8, wherein the tamper indication means includes a collar mounted around the neck of the container below the cap and adapted to be driven around the neck to a captive obtrusive position upon initial opening of the screw- off cap.

10. A package assembly as claimed in claim 8 or claim 9, wherein the collar supports a protrusion which obstructs the price or the price code when disposed in its obtrusive position.

11. A package assembly as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 10, wherein complementary engagement features are provided on the collar and the cap which mate in the factory closed position and which separate after the initial opening so that initial opening moves the collar to its captive obtrusive position.

12. A package assembly as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the complementary engagement features are unable to cooperate in a manner which returns the collar to its unobtrusive position during resealing of the cap.

13. A package assembly as claimed in any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein the tamper indication means includes an extension member which extends from a compressed unobtrusive position to an expanded obtrusive position.

14. A package assembly as claimed in claim 13, wherein the extension member in the obstructive position displays a warning.