WO1999025624A1

WO1999025624A1 - Easy-to-open packaging for lumps of sugar

Info

Publication number: WO1999025624A1
Application number: PCT/IT1998/000279
Authority: WO
Inventors: Giuseppe Cafano; Raffaele Cafano
Original assignee: B.Ma. Snc Di Cafano Giuseppe E Raffaele
Priority date: 1997-11-17
Filing date: 1998-10-14
Publication date: 1999-05-27
Also published as: ITMI972546A1

Abstract

Easily-opened packaging (30, 45) for a product formed of one or more lumps (10) of sugar, single portion or multi-portion, of any regular or irregular form, said packaging consisting of a sheet wrapped round the product, the edges at one end of the product being superimposed and twisted at the other end to form a fan-shaped end, or twisted at both ends of the product to form two fan-shaped ends so that the product (10) can be opened and dropped into a drink (50) by simply pulling on the two fan-shaped ends.

Description

Easy-to-open packaging for lumps of sugar

The invention concerns means for preparing lumps of sugar for sale.

It is well known that lumps of sugar are prepared for sale by compacting loose sugar and cutting up the block so formed, by knives or some other means, into the desired shapes and sizes.

Lumps are thus obtained that can be packed either singly or in groups.

Packaging is in the form of a small packet for which a plain sheet of paper is used.

This sheet is folded first at the sides then front and back to enclose the lump or group of lumps, and may be held in place by glue.

This form of packaging is cheap but not practical in use.

Care must in fact be taken to detach the sides of the sheet if glued or even if merely folded.

To do this pressure must be applied to the lump or group of lumps with the risk of crumbling the contents, causing problems of spillage and use.

The above invention eliminates these drawbacks to the great advantage of users as will be explained below.

Subject of the invention is a means of packaging the product, consisting of one or more lumps of sugar, formed of a sheet of paper wrapped round the lump and made stable by twisting the sheet close to the product, the twisted end then flaring out into a shape like an open fan.

In one type of execution the sheet is folded over at one end of the product and twisted at the other to form a single fan-shaped end. In another type of execution the sheet is twisted at both ends to form two fan-shaped ends.

The sheet is advantageously associated to an inner central sheet which, during packaging, is wrapped round the product for extra protection. Both the sheet and the inner small sheet can advantageously be waterproofed by wax, paraffin wax and the like, or else a layer of plastic material can be applied to it.

The product advantageously consists of a single-portion lump.

Shape of the lump is irregular or regular, as the case may be. Its shape may advantageously be that of a cube, a cylinder or a sphere.

A preferred shape for the lump is that of a rectangular parallepiped generally known as a "lump of sugar"

In one execution dimensions of the lump are approximately cm 1.5x2x2.

Weight of the lump may advantageously vary between 4 and 15 g. The invention offers evident advantages.

To make the sugar sufficiently compact to form a lump of the above shape, substantially less compression may be needed than that normally used.

Wrapping held in place, without glueing or the like, by one or more fan- shaped twists makes it easier to open the product and therefore to use it.

Compared with wrapping at present normally used, which means working on the lump or group of lumps with the fingers that may easily cause crumbling, the invented wrapping ensures that the lump will come out whole and can be put into the coffee or other drink quickly and easily. If a wrapping is glued, finger nails are needed to open it at the ends involving complex and awkward movements especially considering that people taking their drink in a cafe want to consume it in a hurry. With the invented form of packaging, one quick and simple movement only is needed to put a lump or even several lumps into a drink. Especially in the case of the double fan-ended wrapping, a quick untwisting movement will free the sugar at once.

If the wrapped lump is held over the drink, it can be untwisted and dropped straight into it. The possibility of using sheets of waterproofed paper eliminates the risk of structural resistance of the product being lessened for any reason including environmental humidity especially if storage and transport times are long. To sum up the advantages, without any added cost the above invention greatly facilitates the use of wrapped lump sugar for the comfort of users and for the beneficial effects it may have on sales. Characteristics and purposes of the invention will be made still clearer by the following examples of its execution illustrated by diagrammatically drawn figures.

Fig. 1 A single-portion lump of sugar.

Fig. 2 The lump in Fig. 1 packaged according to present methods. Fig. 3 The lump in Fig. 1 ready for packaging in a sheet of paper. Fig. 4 The lump in Fig. 3 when wrapped with a single fan-ended twist. Fig. 5 The lump in Fig. 3 when wrapped with two fan-ended twists.

Fig. 6 The lump in Fig. 1 when being packed with a sheet of paper and with an extra inner sheet. Fig. 7 The lump in Fig. 6 when wrapped with two fan-ended twists. Fig. 8 The lump in Figs 5 and 7 opened to drop into a cup of coffee. Figure 1 shows a single-portion lump 10 of sugar.

In Figure 2 the same lump 10 has been wrapped in a sheet of paper 11 to form a packet 12 according to the commonly known method. Figure 3 shows a sheet of paper 20 with the lump 10 placed in its centre and protected by the wrapping 21 as seen in Fig. 4, the ends 22 of said wrapping being superimposed one over another, the other end of the sheet being twisted to form a single fan-shaped end 23. The two ends of the sheet 20 can both be twisted in the same direction to produce the wrapping 30 with two fan-shaped ends as seen in Fig.5. Fig. 6 shows a sheet 40 in whose centre an extra sheet 41 , coated with a layer of plastic material, has been laid.

The lump of sugar 10 has been placed on this extra sheet.

With this sheet 40 the wrapping 45 with double twist and two fans has been made as seen in Fig. 7. The extra sheet 41 , coated with a layer of plastic material, gives better protection to the lump 10 especially from humidity but also from shocks. Protection against humidity is important as sugar is highly hygroscopic and penetration of humidity might adversely affect its cohesion. Figure 8 shows one of the above described packagings, such as 40 and 45, when the lump of suger is being dropped into the coffee 50 in the cup 51.

As the above invention has been described and explained solely as an example, not limited to this one, and to show its essential features, it is understood that numerous variations can be made to it in accordance with industrial, commercial and other requirements, and that other systems and means may be included without thereby causing any departure from its sphere of use. It must therefore be agreed that the request to patent the invention comprises any equivalent application of its concepts and any equivalent product executed and/or in operation according to any one or more of the characteristics set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1 . Packaging (12, 21 , 30, 45) for a product consisting of one or more lumps (10) of sugar characterized in that it consists of a sheet (20, 40) wrapped round the product (10) and held in place by creating a fan-shaped end (23, 31 46) when said sheet (20, 40) is twisted close up against the product.

2. Packaging (21) as in claim 1 , characterized in that the edges (22) of the sheet (20) are superimposed at one end of the product (10) and twisted at the other end to form one fan-shaped end (23).

3. Packaging (30, 45) as in claim 1 , characterized in that the sheet (40) is twisted at both ends of the product (10) to form two fan-shaped ends (31 , 46).

4. Packaging as in claim 1 , characterized in that a small inner centrally placed sheet (41) is associated to the sheet (40), so that when the package is closed said inner sheet is wrapped round the product (10) to give extra protection.

5. Packaging (21 , 30, 45) as in claim 1 , characterized in that the sheet (20) is waterproofed with wax, paraffin wax and the like.

6. Packaging (45) as in claim 1 , characterized in that a layer of plastic material is applied to the sheet (40).

7. Packaging (45) as in claim 4, characterized in that the small sheet (41) is waterproofed with wax, paraffin wax and the like.

8. Packaging (45) as in claim 4, characterized in that a layer of plastic material is applied to the small sheet (41).

9. Packaging (12, 21 , 30, 45) as in claim 1 , characterized in that the product (10) is a single portion.

10. Packaging (12, 21 , 30, 45) as in claim 1 , characterized in that the product consists of a single-portion lump (10).

1 1 . Packaging as in claim 10, characterized in that the lump is of an irregular shape.

12. Packaging (12, 21 , 30, 45) as in claim 10, characterized in that the lump (10) is of a regular shape.

13. Packaging as in claim 12, characterized in that the shape of the lump is that of a cube.

14. Packaging as in claim 12, characterized in that the shape of the lump is that of a small cylinder.

15. Packaging as in claim 12, characterized in that the shape of the lump is that of a sphere.

16. Packaging (12, 21 , 30, 45) as in claim 12, characterized in that the shape of the lump is that of a rectangular parallelepiped.

17. Packaging (12, 21 , 30, 45) as in claim 16, characterized in that the dimensions of the lump are cm 1.5 x 2 x 2.

18. Packaging (12, 21 , 30, 45) as in claim 16, characterized in that the weight of the lump is comprised between g 4 and 15.