WO2000003934A1

WO2000003934A1 - Hinged-lid cigarette pack

Info

Publication number: WO2000003934A1
Application number: PCT/GB1999/002122
Authority: WO
Inventors: Michael Patrick Parker
Original assignee: British American Tobacco (Investments) Limited
Priority date: 1998-07-20
Filing date: 1999-07-02
Publication date: 2000-01-27
Also published as: JO2118B1; GB9815787D0; AU4634299A

Abstract

In a hinged-lid cigarette pack, facing side walls (26) of the lid (5) and/or side walls (23) of a wrapped charge of cigarettes are treated to exhibit a high coefficient of friction in relation to each other. This resists a tendency of the hinged lid to reopen slightly from its closed position.

Description

HINGED-LID CIGARETTE PACK

This invention relates to the packaging of smoking articles and is concerned with packs of smoking articles such as cigars, cigarillos or cigarettes (hereinafter referred to for convenience as "cigarettes") of the type where a rigid container has a lid hinged for movement between an opened and a closed position. In such a container it is desirable to provide some way of maintaining the hinged lid in the closed condition against unwanted opening. There are two conventional ways of doing this, both or either of which may be present in a given prior art pack. In one, the geometry of the hinge line and of the lid in relation to the main part of the container or to its contents are such that there is a slight over-centre action as the lid passes during its hinged motion from closed to open position and vice versa,

this being in the nature of a brushing past a top front edge of an array of cigarettes in the pack and/or of the frame of the main part of the container. In the other, ears project laterally from edges of an inner frame of the rigid container, these rubbing frictionally against the inner surface of side walls of the lid to brake its movement. This is to help prevent "yawning", namely a tendency for the lid to spring back slightly from its closed position so that its front no longer lies coplanar with the front of the rest of the container.

In O-A-9822368 we have disclosed a new type of pack which we have designated semi-rigid, where a sealed barrier-layer enclosure including the cigarettes is formed around an open frame, the whole then being, at least as far as relevant to the present application, inserted in a hinged-lidded rigid outer container, and in WO-A-9822367 we have disclosed a resealable enclosure of a cuboid cigarette pack which has a truly resealable enclosure of barrier material around the cigarettes, the resealability being by virtue of the provision of a label with a continuously permanently tacky surrounding around an access opening (or potential access opening) of a barrier layer enclosure, which opening extends from a top wall of the pack into a major face.

The present invention is concerned with a means and method for solving the problem of "yawning" especially but not exclusively in packs of the type referred to in the said WO publications, and which have a hinged pack lid. It does so by treating one or both of contacting surfaces to increase friction between them in the closed condition of the lid.

GB-A-2189494 provides a high-friction resealing contact between a removable lid of a container and a body part, by covering all surfaces of the materials of both with polyethylene.

However, we are concerned with a different problem, namely that of "yawning" and we deal with it by modifying at least one of (a) the outwardly directed side faces of the upper portion of the wrapped charge of a pack and (b) the inner side face of a hinged lid of the pack to increase the coefficient of friction interacting between them when in the closed position; that is to say, one or both is specifically treated to provide a surface of high frictional coefficient in relation to the other. The treatment may be applied over the whole of the relevant surface(s), which lie face-to-face, or only over a part of it or them.

We find that with this provision, preferably but not necessarily in conjunction with an improved overcentre action, the problem of yawning may be substantially or completely eliminated.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, a high friction surface is provided by bending back a portion of side flaps of a lid to overlie face-to-face the remainder of the side flaps of the lid and expose to the side surface of the contained charge the printed (varnished) external face of that turned-back portion. This face has a higher coefficient of friction than either the natural board of which the container is made, or of the base surface of such a container which frequently may have a foil or crafted underlayer below varnishing so as to obtain a high print quality. The turned-back portion may be a further part of an extension of the side flap which normally underlies the top surface of the lid, or may be part of the side flap which forms the inner face of the side wall of the lid. In an alternative preferred embodiment a high friction hot melt material is applied in a line or lines, or in a pattern, to the inner faces of the side flaps of the lid. The hot melt material will stand proud of the surface of the side wall to engage with high friction against the side surface of the contained charge when the lid is closed.

Other expedients are possible and some will be described in the following description given with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 shows a blank for a pack of a first embodiment ;

Figure 2 shows that pack made up;

Figure 3 is a blank for a second embodiment;

Figure 4 shows that pack made up; Figure 5 shows a pack of a third embodiment;

Figure 6 shows a pack of a fourth embodiment ; and

Figure 7 shows a blank for a fifth embodiment.

Looking first at Figure 1, a container for a flip top type of pack has a first major panel 1 linked via a base panel 2 to a rear major panel 3, an upper portion 4 of which forms the rear of a lid generally indicated at 5 of which a top panel 6 leads to a front flap 7 and an extension 8. All these parts are joined by hinge lines indicated as dotted lines in the drawing .

Major panels 1 and 3 of a body part of the container have side flaps 9,10 respectively terminating at an inclined mitre cut. Upper portion 4 of the rear panel 3 has side flaps 11 for the lid with correspondingly inclined lower edges and from the upper edges of which top flaps 12 extend. Front flap 7 of the lid has side flaps 13. In the erection of the container formed from the blank, sealing areas

14,15 shown by cross-hatching on the side flaps 10 and the side flaps 11 of the lid are, after appropriate folding, secured inside the side flaps 9 and side flaps 13, with top flaps 12 lying underneath the lid top portion 6 and extension flaps 16 of the side flaps 10 lying above the base 2. Extension flap 8 is doubled back under the front wall 7 of the lid to increase the overcentre effect of that lid in relation to a charge of cigarettes inside the erected container.

To increase the frictional effect between the erected container and the charge which it holds, a stripe 20 of high friction ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer-based hot melt material is applied on the undersurface (as seen in Figure 1) of the side flap 11 of the lid portion 5. After erection of the container, this is on an inner face 15 of the side flap 11 of the lid, as seen at 20 of Figure 2, which shows also an assembled and wrapped charge 21 of cigarettes, here of the enclosed and resealable type with a label 22 as disclosed in WO-A-9822367.

The rib 20 of high friction material stands proud of the inner face 15 is of the side wall 11 of the lid and engages against the side face 23 of the charge 21 when the lid is moving towards and is in its closed position. The tendency of any user is to press the lid fully closed, and this movement is assisted by the overcentre action between the front corner of the charge and the inner face of the doubled-back extension 8 of the lid. The effect of the high friction engagement between the ridge 20 and the charge 21 is that the lid is maintained in a fully closed position without a tendency for the front 7 of the lid to lift away from coplanarity with the major panel 1 of the front of the other, body, portion of the container. If as is preferred the wrapped charge has an internal open frame, as in WO-A-9822368 , side walls of that frame support the flexible laminate barrier material which enwraps the charge.

Obviously, instead of a single rib, plural ribs, drops or any other suitable pattern of material could be applied. A second embodiment of blank is shown in Figure 3. Like parts are given like numbers to the first embodiment. This embodiment however is modified in the region of the side flaps 11' and flaps 12' of the l id 5 ' .

The lower edge 25 of flaps 11' does not conform to the upper edge 26 of side flaps 10', and flap 12' is the mirror image of the shape of flap 11 ' . The blank will have been printed with a varnished surface over the majority of the area of the face seen in Figure 3, except for sealing areas 14,15, this printing including the visible face of the flaps 12 ' . The printing ink used in this printing/varnishing, used to give an attractive appearance to the packet and to convey information etc, gives a comparatively high coefficient of friction to the surfaces it is on, compared to the untreated surface or to one where only a base foil or metallisation has been applied. The under- surface in Figure 3, i.e. the invisible one, will be such a one.

In erection of the container, side flaps are sealed together as before but instead of flaps 12 ' being left under the lid 6 of the lid, they are doubled back and secured face-to-face with the inner surface of flaps 11' . The erected container of this embodiment is shown in Figure 4, again containing an assembled and overwrapped charge 21 of cigarettes.

This pack therefore presents, face-to- face with the wrapped charge 21, a face of the doubled back flap 12' bearing that comparatively high friction material. Both by virtue of the thickening caused by the doubling back and by virtue of that increased coefficient of friction, a very satisfactory grip is achieved which resists a tendency of the lid to yawn in its closed position. Once again, if the charge includes an open frame as in WO-A- 9822368 , pressure exerted on the charge is supported.

As is now clearly apparent, equivalent effects can be achieved in various alternative ways . For example as illustrated in Figure 5, a trapezoidal patch of high friction material 25 may be applied to or printed on the side wall of the wrapped charge 21' for interaction with the inner face of a side wall of a lid 5 which is either unmodified as compared to a conventional pack or modified in the ways seen in either or both of the first two embodiments. The patch 25 may equally be discontinuous or may be or include the application of a high friction hot melt material as in the rib 20 of the first embodiment. Equally, the patch 25 could be printed onto a discrete area of the barrier material which is to make up the overwrap of the charge so as to be appropriately positioned when the charge is made up.

Likewise, as shown in Figure 6, separate patches or layers of high friction material 26 may be applied inside the whole or part of the side walls of the lid, for the same purpose.

The fifth embodiment, seen in Figure 7, is a modification of the second. As in Figures 3 and 5 it is the printed/varnished face that is visible. Instead of the flap 12 of the side flap being folded down inside side flap 11, a triangular portion 27 of the latter lying between a fold line and the mitre cut 28 is printed and folded back inside the remainder 29 of the flap so as to present the printed, higher frictional, face to the side of the wrapped charge, preferably with an open frame within the enclosure formed by the barrier material which is the wrapping.

Claims

1. A pack of smoking articles in which a wrapped charge of smoking articles is held within a rigid container which has a hinged access lid, an outwardly directed side face of the charge and/or corresponding inner side face of the lid being treated to provide in the pivotally closed position of the lid a high frictional coefficient interaction between corresponding side faces of the lid and the wrapped charge.

2. A pack according to claim 1 in which high frictional coefficient material is printed on at least one of the side faces of the wrapping of the charge.

3. A pack according to claim 1 in which patches applied to at least one of the side faces of the wrapped charge provide regions of high frictional coefficient material.

4. A pack according to any one of claims 1 to 3 in which high frictional coefficient material is printed on at least one of said lid side faces.

5. A pack according to any one of the preceding claims in which lid flap portions are folded back to overlie face-to-face respective lid side flaps, the lid flap portions having printed faces which form said lid side faces, the printed faces having a higher frictional coefficient than the finish of the wall so overlain.

6. A pack according to claim 5 in which the lid flap portions extend from side flaps underlying the top surface of the lid.

7. A pack according to claim 5 in which the lid flap portions extend from side flaps underlying the side surfaces of the lid.

8. A pack according to any one of claims 4 to 7 in which the higher frictional coefficient of the printed faces is provided by a printed varnish.

9. A pack according to any one of claims 1 to 3 in which high frictional coefficient hot melt material is applied to and stands proud of said lid side faces.

10. A pack according to claim 9 in which the hot melt material is of ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer.

11. A pack according to claim 9 or claim 10 in which the hot melt material is applied in a line on each lid side face.

12. A pack according to any one of claims 1 to 3 in which patches applied to said lid side faces provide regions of high frictional coefficient material .